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Author: cr49818n
2017-2018 #3: Digital Englishes
The grand debate of the Digital Age has become whether or not social media has wreaked havoc on/improved our command of the English language. There is no doubt that technology, along with the advent of social media, has made a substantial impact on the English language. Twenty years ago, the word "selfie" surely would not have taken up residency in the Oxford Dictionary, let alone be declared as the dictionary's Word of the Year. Similarly, familiar words have taken on new meanings in the Technologic Age as well: "like", "profile", "troll", etc. English is no stagnant; with the advancement of technology, it is constantly changing.
Yet does the purist argument of social media destroying English hold water? One commenter on an online forum firmly agrees that it does, stating that in recent years, "Slangs have creeped in and the purity of the language is lost. People do not want to complete sentences with required punctuations, as it wastes their time. . . And it's not even amusing." (Shilpa Taneja). Another site that totes itself as a professional editing and proofreading service suggests that Spanglish, Chinglish, Hinglish are hindrances on the language because "English is a separate, self-sufficient language, which does not have to blend with other languages in order to be suitable for someone." ("Effect of Social Media on Modern English Language").
Perhaps the language hasn't been left entirely untouched, but as the dominant international language of the 21st century, English has been transformed by the way we use it digitally. Digital English has become a way to preserve regional dialects, keeping them in rotation and in written form where they once may have dwindled in usage. Non-standard dialects, such as Hinglish, Singlish, southern white English, black American English, are being written more than they used to. As a result, other online users are experiencing these Englishes for the first time and may not have had the exposure to them if not for social media.
Finally, using Twitter as an example, social media has become an asset in teaching us how to become better communicators. The social media platform's character limit pushes its users to stay within its confines, forcing us to craft short and deliberate arguments to get our point across. This quickness of words has pushed us towards getting to the core of what we want to convey, rather than spend our time filling our content with "fluff" and lengthy speeches. As a result, this quick crafting of arguments serves somewhat like a TV ad: short yet effective. In our daily interactions, this allows us to keep conversations going, causing others to reply in short yet effective responses that allow numerous people to join the conversation without the intimidation of a lengthy reply.
https://www.quora.com/Has-social-media-affected-the-way-we-speak-and-write-English
http://royalediting.com/effect-of-social-media-on-modern-english-language
Author cr49818nPosted on April 6, 2018 Categories 2017-2018, Chloe RichardsTags Chloe RichardsLeave a comment on 2017-2018 #3: Digital Englishes
2017-2018 #2: Other Englishes
Progress is being made on our project! I am constantly trying to dig up new media sources to go along with my last post that shows the portrayal of standard English as the golden standard for our project, branching off from the My Fair Lady discussion. It is interesting to process all these depictions of standard English as being the 'proper' English in media, especially since it isn't something that we specifically pick up on during a movie viewing. At this point, I'm getting close to touching upon each facet of our project (the social media portion is coming next), but I'd like to dive a little deeper into each previous section to really flesh out my arguments. However, I think I've done pretty well at laying a foundation for the remainder of the research, which is really exciting! The rise in prominence of other Englishes besides standard English is really intriguing to look into.
This next portion of the project focuses on 'Other Englishes', which I've begun to look into. Contrary to popular belief, the presence of other Englishes has already begun embedding itself in our everyday lives. This shift away from monolinguistic language has come with the need to make the language sound more and more like the 'informal' language used in everyday life. For this particular post and because it hits so close to home for me, I will focus on the Geoffrey K. Pullum's "African American Vernacular English Is Not Standard English With Mistakes". The recognition of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) is not a new phenomenon; in 1996, one California school-board meeting in Oakland ended with the decision to recognize AAVE as a language, deemed it as classroom appropriate, and trained teachers to "look at it objectively and appreciate its merits" (Pullum 39). However, the decision was met with harsh criticism and ridicule, mostly due to the perception that AAVE is a degenerate form of standard English plagued with mistakes in grammar and pronunciation—the "street slang of an ignorant urban underclass" (Pullum 40). However, Pullum rejects this claim, noting that there is a clear distinction between slang and AAVE. He argues that "no subculture's slang could constitute a language" because slang consists of words and phrases that feeds off a host language, possessing no grammar of its own (Pullum 40). AAVE, however, does not possess the same qualities as slang. AAVE, in fact, is a dialect of English—"a classificatory claim [that is the same as saying] a white-tailed deer is a kind of deer"; 'dialect' is not a term that is meant to portray one—AAVE, in this case—as a lesser form of another (Pullum 44). Pullum also identifies AAVE as having "a degree of regularity and stability attributable to a set of rules or grammar of rules and punctuation, as with any language" (45). This argument demands that AAVE gets the respect and recognization it deserves.
This only touches the surface of Pullum's argument. I'd like to dig deeper into the argument to discover how this specific argument can be applied to a variety of Englishes outside of AAVE.
Source: https://web.stanford.edu/~zwicky/aave-is-not-se-with-mistakes.pdf
Author cr49818nPosted on January 18, 2018 Categories 2017-2018, Chloe RichardsTags Chloe RichardsLeave a comment on 2017-2018 #2: Other Englishes
2017-2018 Blog Post #1: Intro/Deconstructing 'My Fair Lady'
The 2017-2018 school year marks the continuation of "Sharing Englishes and Social Media", a journey embarked on by Dr. Florescu and I. The first portion of our project has explored personal experiences, scholarly texts, and some previous research surrounding the way the monolinguistic 'English' has shaped our lives. This upcoming part of our project will be centered on how the concept of monolinguistic English appears in social media. "Social media" — for the sake of our project — branches outside of what we have come to know as present day social media, such as Twitter, Facebook, etc. We will be exploring those platforms as well, but "social media" for this project will also encapsulate the arts, such as movies, literature, and so on. Dr. Florescu and I also plan to take a closer look into how our present society has found ways to branch away from monolinguistic English, creating other Englishes are, indeed, valid forms of Englishes.
As an introduction to the half of our research dedicated to media, I'd like to begin by deconstructing this clip of My Fair Lady. For those unfamiliar with the film, the Google synopsis of the film is as follows:
"In this beloved musical, pompous phonetics professor Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison) is so sure of his abilities that he takes it upon himself to transform a Cockney working-class girl into someone who can pass for a cultured member of high society. His subject turns out to be the lovely Eliza Doolittle (Audrey Hepburn), who agrees to speech lessons to improve her job prospects."
The synopsis alone is very telling: language becomes a classist factor, a tool that can be used to differentiate who is of 'high society' and who is not. Not only does Eliza Doolittle's working-class society set her apart from high society, but linguistically, her Cockney accent — common among working-class Londoners — becomes a dead giveaway to her social standing.
The clip begins with Higgins asking Doolittle to recite the phrase: "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain." He is clearly exasperated by her pronunciation, calling it an offense to the Lord (My Fair Lady 0:00-0:37). Although 'proper issue' is more often than not looked upon as a minority issue, it is important to note that both Higgins and Doolittle are white; the only thing that separates them is that Doolittle is a female and more importantly, she is working-class.
The film takes on a rather classist approach. The premise of the movie is centered around Doolittle not being considered a proper lady due to the way she performs her English, as it is associated with being working-class. The fact of the matter is that Doolittle does speak English, but clearly, this is not enough for Doolittle. He needs her to speak proper English or fulfill what I have previously referred to as the gold standard of English. In his eyes, her Cockney accent does not satiate the requirements. Rather than being looked at as a full-fledged human, Doolittle is Othered because her Cockney accent is a signifier of her marginalized working-class status. Professor Higgins asserts his superiority over her; he is white, male, and upperclass, and so, he becomes the standard. In order for her to be perceived as acceptable to him and his society, she must assimilate and shape herself in his likeness. This process becomes impossible if she cannot change the way she performs her English and thus, she becomes his project — a broken thing that needs fixing. An entire song is dedicated to his plight, titled "Poor Professor Higgins", as he endures the burden of civilizing the social savage.
Through the performance of her English, Doolittle becomes the butt of the joke. We are not meant to take her seriously in this clip because even Higgins does not take her seriously. Higgins views Doolittle, in her current state, as a blight on society, while we look at her as comedic relief because of her inability to fulfill the gold standard. However, perceiving those who speak dialects affiliated with the working-class as purely comedic is problematic, since we are taking joy/humor in someone's social status because we see them as being lesser.
https://www.google.com/search?q=my+fair+lady+plot&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS737US737&oq=my+fair+lady+plot&aqs=chrome.0.69i59j0l5.3655j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
Author cr49818nPosted on November 1, 2017 Categories 2017-2018, Chloe RichardsTags Chloe RichardsLeave a comment on 2017-2018 Blog Post #1: Intro/Deconstructing 'My Fair Lady'
English-Speaking Immigrants, Race-Born Englishes, and The "Gold Standard"
It is impossible to conduct this research without reflecting on how English has impacted my life and my family's, so to further my reason, I introduce the personal narratives of my immigrant parents' experiences with Englishes, as well as my own.
Both my father and my mother are immigrants, hailing from the island of Jamaica and the South American country of Guyana respectively. In Jamaica, the official language is English, but the dialect is commonly referred to as Patois. My mother's homeland of Guyana is the only South American country that has English as its official language and many Guyanese people also speak Patois as well. While being born into a country that boasts English at the official language might suggest that the transition from their country to the United States was a smoother transition than a non-English speaking immigrant to the States, there was still a struggle with the language for my parents, especially my mother.
My mother's mother, a Wapishana woman, was born in a region called Rupununi in Southern Guyana and spoke the Wapishana language. She attended school and never finished high school, but clearly recalled the school teaching the King's English, though their community primarily spoke the Arawakan language amongst eachother. She ended up running away from her village and into the village of Georgetown where she met her future husband, who insisted that he would one day bring her and her children to the United States. While she never really believed him, she continued to teach her children the King's English, "just in case". To prepare her children for an English-speaking culture, she never taught them how to speak Wapishana. For her, her main goal was getting them to smoothly transition into the United States through language assimilation, making them practice their "perfect English" so they would have better opportunities than she would have.
Growing up in Guyana, my mother was often told that she spoke "good English" by adults while other children mocked her for being "highty-tighty" (or being posh/believing that she was superior to them). Upon arriving in America, my mother found herself being teased for having an accent, despite speaking "perfect English" back at home. It was the accent that was a dead-giveaway for her not being American-born, and because others recognized this through her speech, it made her highly self-conscious when it came to speaking. Back at home, "[she] felt superior, while in America, [she] felt inferior"; being labeled as a foreigner due to her particular English made her work twice as hard at perfecting her King's English, not wanting to seem 'lesser than' in comparison to her peers.
This story brings up the concept of class connotations related to language, as well as the identity erasure of immigrants in relation to language assimilation. Because the children in her homeland of Guyana called my mother out for being "highty-tighty" for trying to perfect the King's English, this shows us that even children understand the class association with language from a young age. Because the King's English is held as the gold standard (aka the best form of English there is), those who achieve it (or chase after it) are also held to a certain status; those who do not perfect it are seen as lesser and tied with a negative class association. Because such a strong emphasis was placed on my mother's life to learn the King's English, other children perceived her as believing she was better than them. This class distinction still exists in American culture, as those who speak "proper English" are viewed as natural, while those who do not are instantly Othered as being different or not living up to the standard.
Identity erasure through language assimilation traces back to my first blog post, specifically the analysis of Marlene Nourbese Philip's "Discourse on the Logic of Language". Like my mother and father, Nourbese Philip (of Trinidad and Tobago) comes from a country where English is the official language. Yet like my mother, there is a war waging within Nourbese Philip's identity as an English-speaking immigrant. English is both my mother and Nourbese Philip's mother tongue, a language they have known all of their lives. Still, there is a foreignness to this mother tongue; although it is "natural" for them, they feel as if they must fight to achieve the gold standard in the eyes of a new society. The internal struggle between their culture/identity and attempting to assimilate to this European standard of language causes them great confusion. This also causes them anguish, and through this anguish, they recognize that the language is not as "natural" as they believed it to be their entire lives. I grew up in the community of Canarsie in Brooklyn, New York. Composed of mostly Caribbean and black families, it is more common to hear both Patois and African-American Vernacular English (or AAVE) where I live. In both cases, both Patois have incorrectly been identified as "slang" or "broken English", when they are not either. In fact, "broken English" has negative connotations, as they insinuate that they are incorrect or "broken" and in need of being fixed.
For myself, I grew up in the community of Canarsie in Brooklyn. Comprised of mostly Caribbean and black families, the most common dialects where I live are Patois and African-American Vernacular English (or AAVE). In the cases of Patois and AAVE (which has previously been referred to as Ebonics), both have incorrectly been identified as "slang" or "broken English", when they are not either. In fact, the terminology "broken English" itself has negative connotations behind it. "Broken" insinuates that it is something that needs to be fixed, as it is not correct. Only once it is fixed can it be deemed as "in working condition".
I believe that my mother unknowingly drew from her experiences with her own brother, except this time, it was related to AAVE. My mother stressed the same importance of speaking/knowing the King's English to myself and my siblings and in our household, we were not allowed to speak AAVE at all. Whenever my mother heard a sentence slip from our lips that did not fall within the parameters of the King's English, we were immediately popped on the back of our heads and corrected. Even letting it slip once at the dinner table was enough to garner a dirty look from my mother, which prompted you to be on your P's and Q's for the remained of dinner.
In my mother's eyes, she was preparing her children to assimilate into a King's English-speaking culture. Knowing firsthand how speaking anything but the gold standard of English could Other a person, she steered us away from using anything less than that standard of English. She believed that her children fluently speaking this form of English would open doors to new opportunities and feared that her children speaking less because of negative connotations. AAVE holds its own stigma, as it is often connected with uneducated minority communities. People who speak AAVE are often perceived as "ghetto", suggesting an inferior status due to race and class. It wasn't until I was older that I began to use AAVE, allowing myself to get comfortable in this form of English used by my peers that gave us a oneness that we understood. While my mother still frowns upon the usage of AAVE in the household, it took for all of her children to learn on our own that using AAVE does not suggest in any way that we are uneducated, classless, or inferior to others who do not use this form of English.
The narratives from myself, my mother, and her mother show the dangerous assumptions that stem from believing that one single English should be upheld as the gold standard. To continue on this path of having a single standard raises many questions for myself:
Are we not allowed to celebrate our own Englishes because they do not fit into the gold standard? Will immigrants forever be subjected to chasing after a strict standard of English while shedding their identities in the process, perpetuating this cycle of erasure? Will race-influenced Englishes never be seen as true Englishes and similarly to the immigrant plight, will they have to shun their personal Englishes in order to conform to an English more palatable by society? These are all questions that I seek to answer (and disprove) over the course of our year-long research.
Author cr49818nPosted on August 14, 2017 August 14, 2017 Categories Chloe Richards, Summer 2017Tags Chloe RichardsLeave a comment on English-Speaking Immigrants, Race-Born Englishes, and The "Gold Standard"
Sharing Englishes and Social Media
Dr. Florescu and I are currently working on our project titled, "Sharing Englishes and Social Media". Through our project, we aim to emphasize the need to recognize that there is more than one way for an individual to perform the English language, thus creating a series of "Englishes". Furthermore, we seek to dispel the myth of "improper English" by acknowledging how language has been used to oppress and subdue minority communities by forcing them to adhere to monolinguistic English, rather than forming their own tongue and identity. By examining the factors in which language has been used to suppress, this research could be used to change our perceptions on English by allowing us to acknowledge a multitudinous array of "Englishes" as valid, question what we deem "proper English", and create newfound understanding for those who do not perform their English in the same way that we do. I aim to do this by drawing from various media—literature, media, music, songs, and art—that comment on how one's personal identity influences their own Englishes. I would like to go through scholarly journals to find articles in relation to race, gender, immigration status, and sexual identity to see the significants between these groups and the English language. Lastly, I would also like to conduct some informal interviews to gain insight on those who speak English as a second language, those who have stylized the English language in the black, female, and queer communities, and how social media has allowed them to enhance and control their own languages. If I could figure out a way to conduct a survey that could capture these thoughts, that would be phenomenal as well.
As an introduction to our topic, I have studied the 8-minute long audio track of "Discourse on the Logic of Language" by Marlene Nourbese Philip, as well as Lenelle Moïse's "the children of immigrants", using them as points of comparison.
Philip's audio track is spoken with a certain calmness, but there is a commanding presence about it. She repeats the message multiple times: "English is my mother tongue / a mother tongue is not a foreign lan lan language / l(anguish) / anguish / a foreign anguish / therefore, English is a foreign language / not a mother tongue." Immediately, Philip paints for us a picture of the conflict between herself and the English language. She claims English as her mother tongue and states that it is not a foreign language because it is a part of her, something as natural as breathing air. Yet still, despite the naturalness of English and her asserting her ownership of the language, she also recognizes that English is something that brings her great anguish; she does this through combining "language" and "anguish" to create "l(anguish)". English is seemingly innate to Philip, but she cannot ignore that the language has been imposed on her, making her natural tongue seem foreign to her simultaneously. It is both her own and not her own, as a colonial and postcolonial lens would identify English as being a Eurocentric standard forced upon minorities. This idea of conflict may appear confusing to the listener during the first listen, as Philip states contradicting ideas on English being a mother tongue/not a mother tongue as well as foreign/not foreign. However, the confusion perfectly captures the way that Philip feels: something so natural to her—a language that she has spoken since birth—still feels foreign to her because it is of someone else. As she repeats this internal struggle with herself and the language, booming clinical voices overpower her throughout the course of the audio track. They come without warning, drowning out her mantra with their own agendas.These voices do succeed in overpowering her at several points, giving historical snippets of ways that language has been used to oppress minorities: slave owners buying slaves that spoke different languages so they would not be able to communicate and form a rebellion, parts of the brain related to speech being named/connected to scientists that tried to prove that white males' brains were larger (and proved superiority to blacks, women, and other groups), etc. As a black woman, her voice is overpowered by the white voices and we can no longer hear her. She must repeat her message multiple times and fight in order for her message to be heard, as other voices attempt to silence her.
On the other hand, Moïse's "the children of immigrants" does not directly address language, but the implication that the study of language is crucial for the children of immigrants is absolutely present. The children of immigrants are gazed upon with great scrutiny: by their parents, teachers, and other individuals in their lives. Their parents force them to grow up quickly by leaving behind their childhood and launching them through adulthood at a young age, in hopes that this will grant them a better opportunity at life once they have grown. As the child of immigrants, they are not expected to have mastered the language at such a young age. A teacher bewilderedly questions Moïse, "How do you know? How do you already know?" Yet as children of immigrants, the children are held to an entirely different standard within their households. They must assimilate into this culture and perfect it in every way possible, including through their mastery of the English language. They must enunciate, spell, and speak properly, and once they have done it, they are forced to be the "bridge, cultural interpreter, [and] spokesperson" for two different cultures. Through their parents expecting better lives for the children and by the children witnessing the hardships their parents endure for them to have an opportunity, their children are not allowed to be children. Instead, they take on the adult-like responsibility of reaching 'the standard', then go beyond the standard by perfecting it. The bar is set the highest for them and in a sense, they must speak English even better than native speakers with non-immigrant parents. In return, they are commended for their fluency in English. However, it must be questioned at what cost to the child's emotional wellbeing and growth is this praise gained.
"Discourse on the Logic of Language" by Marlene Nourbese Philip
http://www.nourbese.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Discourse-She-Tries-01.mp3
Lenelle Moïse's "the children of immigrants"
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poems/detail/91753
Author cr49818nPosted on July 17, 2017 August 14, 2017 Categories Chloe Richards, Summer 2017Tags Chloe RichardsLeave a comment on Sharing Englishes and Social Media


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Q: Java Map.containsKey(ArrayList) returns false in one line and true in the next I have a HashMap<ArrayList<Integer>, Integer>. I'm removing objects from the Map before replacing them, so I'm trying to avoid put calls which already have the key present in order to keep the Map size the same (for a steady-state Evolutionary Algorithm I'm writing from scratch).
The replacements are coming from an ArrayList<ArrayList<Integer>> listOfArrs. Throughout some of my runs, the Map size has been decreasing because there have been duplicates present in this nested ArrayList. In the course of debugging, I've found this problem: the following code prints GOODBYE but not HELLO.
void updateMap(ArrayList<ArrayList<Integer>> listOfArrs) {
    //debug loop
    for (ArrayList<Integer> arr : listOfArrs) {
        if (mapObj.containsKey(arr)) System.out.println("HELLO");
    }
    for (ArrayList<Integer> arr : listOfArrs) {
        if (mapObj.containsKey(arr)) System.out.println("GOODBYE");
        mapObj.put(arr, 0);
    }
}

When I originally get the listOfArrs from a different function, I use listOfArrs.removeIf(arr -> mapObj.containsKey(arr)) in an attempt to prevent duplicates, but it seems that's not working.

A: Figured it out - it's an obvious one. The listOfArrs contained duplicates that I didn't check for. When I'm iterating through that second for loop in the original post they start showing up because I'm checking the map after I've added one of the first duplicates.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Members of the Pinto family gather on the ground floor of a hotel in Fort Myers, Fla., Sept. 10, 2017.
SJCFR Urban Search and Rescue teams are finding numerous homes throughout the county that have been damaged by high winds, fallen trees and flood waters.
A car sits abandoned in storm surge waters along North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard as Hurricane Irma hits the southern part of the state Sept. 10, 2017 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
The aftermath of Hurricane Irma is seen in Florida Keys, Fla, Sept. 11, 2017.
Residents return to Miami Beach, Fla., Sept. 12, 2017.
Street flooding is prevalent on the Southbank of downtown as Hurricane Irma passes by in Jacksonville, Fla., Sept. 11, 2017.
A Charleston, S.C. resident puts plastic up over his apartment door as a car rests in floodwaters near East Bay Street in Charleston, S.C., Sept. 10, 2017.
A street is flooded as Hurricane Irma passes through Naples, Fla., Sept. 10, 2017.
Hurricane Irma causes damage in an East Naples mobile home park, in Naples, Fla., Sept. 11, 2017.
A vehicle passes downed palm trees and two cyclists attempt to ride as Hurricane Irma passes through the area on Sept. 10, 2017 in Miami Beach, Fla.
A gas station sign lies along Biscayne Boulevard after Hurricane Irma struck in Miami, Sept. 10, 2017.
Police officers climb atop a vehicle while trying to salvage it from the aftermath of Hurricane Irma in North Port, Fla., Sept. 11, 2017.
Evacuees sit inside of the Germain Arena that is serving as a shelter from the approaching Hurricane Irma, Sept. 9, 2017 in Estero, Florida.


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FIFA 23: What can we expect from World Cup mode
By Hasi Last updated Aug 16, 2022
It is that time of the year when we usually talk about the upcoming FIFA and all of its new features. This might be one of the last FIFA games coming from EA Games just because they recently announced that they will end their nearly thirty-year partnership. EA will continue to make football games under a different name -EA Sports FC.
Though, let's put that aside, and focus on what is ahead of us. The latest FIFA 23 is just around the corner and it seems like EA has been busy at work creating all new features and more realistic gameplay.
The new game will come with more realistic movement, big changes to Career Mode and Ultimate Team, and we will have one of the most desired features, which is the World Cup Tournament.
This is the perfect time for FIFA to release a somehow new feature to the game before the World Cup 2022 in Qatar. Yes, you will be able to play with the updated rosters of the countries in the World Cup soccer odds.
Let's dig deeper and find out all the features that will come with the World Cup mode just to get our heads in the game and prepare for the biggest tournament in the world of sports.
FIFA 23 World Cup Mode – Everything We Need to Know
When it comes to sharing information, EA is not so much of a talker. In other words, they didn't share much information apart from the trailer that revealed that the new game will feature a World Cup Mode.
So, despite the uncertainty surrounding the long-term franchise, players can rest assured at the moment since they'll be getting another jewel of a game. They also said that, even though the partnership has come to an end, they are focused and committed to ensuring that the next FIFA will be the best game ever.
About the World Cup Mode, there isn't much information about its release date and whether will it be included in the original game. Judging from the not-so-great history of EA, there is a chance that we will see the World Cup mode as a DLC that people should purchase additionally.
However, most people think that the World Cup Mode will come as an update after the release date of FIFA 23 for free.
One thing is for sure we will be also getting a FIFA 23 Women's World Cup. The Women's World Cup is scheduled for 2023 and will take place in Australia and New Zealand. Even though we know that the Women's World Cup is also coming to FIFA 23, we don't know whether or not will be included in the game or come as an update before the tournament.
What do Players Expect from The World Cup Mode in FIFA 23?
Since there isn't much information about this new tournament mode in FIFA 23, people like to speculate and add things to their wishlist. After all, this is one of the biggest tournaments in the world of sports, that comes just before the unique Qatar World Cup that will take place in the Winter as opposed to the Summer.
So, let's find what players expect to see in the new World Cup Mode in FIFA 23.
Realistic Commentary that is Different Than the Standard Commentators
The commentary on FIFA games can set you in the right mood and make you feel that you are competing in the real World Cup. As we know that the commentary on every FIFA game is world-class.
These levels of the high-class commentary should be held for the World Cup Mode, and it is nice to see some changes that will make games even more exciting.
Deciding Which Teams will Enter the Next Round from the AI Teams
Having an impact on the championship and deciding which teams will progress to the late stages of the tournament is a much-expected option by the fans. That way they can recreate certain scenarios and create an incredible atmosphere.
Ability to Enter a Custom Nation in the Tournament
Not all Nations will be included in the FIFA World Cup. Therefore, most people expect that FIFA will add a feature that can give people the ability to add custom nations into the tournament. That way, we can see nations that never competed in the tournament playing against one of the greats.
Multiplier Tournaments
Enjoying the game against an AI is great, but if you want the real experience, it is best to compete against a friend. Multiplayer is the feature that makes the FIFA game special and most people hope to see this feature in the World Cup Mode.
Can you imagine competing with your nation against other people? This will intensify the feeling of the tournament and pump you up full of adrenaline making you feel like a true champion after you win the tournament.
NBA 2K23′ New Gameplay Features And Changes
Gamblers Australia. Is virtual reality as good as they say it is?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Indiana Legal Services and the National Health Law Program File Lawsuit to bring Healthy Indiana Plan Into Compliance with Federal Medicaid Law
In a federal lawsuit filed today in the District Court for Washington D.C., individuals represented by Indiana Legal Services (ILS) and the National Health Law Program (NHeLP) are challenging Medicaid waivers that the federal government has approved for the Healthy Indiana Plan. In 2018, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services approved Indiana's request to impose work requirements as a condition of coverage for adults. This restriction, projected to jettison thousands of people from coverage through the Healthy Indiana Plan, accompanies other waiver cuts in the State, including lock-outs for failure to pay premiums, no retroactive coverage, and no non-emergency medical transportation to and from health care appointments. "These requirements put an extra burden on Medicaid eligibility that jeopardizes the health coverage of our clients and thousands of other vulnerable individuals" said Adam Mueller, Director of Advocacy at Indiana Legal Services.
This is the fourth federal lawsuit challenging a Medicaid waiver project with a work requirement component approved by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In the other three lawsuits, the plaintiffs have been successful in challenging the harmful waivers. National Health Law Program Legal Director Jane Perkins said the HHS Secretary has again taken authority he does not have. "Congress has defined the scope of the Secretary's power to waive portions of the Medicaid Act, and that scope is limited. We have filed this case because the federal government ignored these limits in its efforts to fundamentally transform Medicaid and explode the Affordable Care Act's expansion of health insurance to cover medically necessary services that low-income adults need. This approval will not promote coverage, but it will result in significant coverage losses, and that is the administration's goal—to weaken the Medicaid program and cull people whom it deems unworthy from it," Perkins said.
Read the complaint here and access plaintiff stories here. A summary of the case can be accessed here.
About Indiana Legal Services
Indiana Legal Services, Inc., is the largest provider of free civil legal assistance to low-income people in Indiana. We help clients who are faced with legal problems that harm their ability to have such basics as food, shelter, income, medical care, or personal safety. Indiana Legal Services handles cases involving domestic violence, housing, consumer law, access to health care, LGBTQ discrimination, and access to government benefits. It does not handle criminal matters. The nonprofit firm was established in 1966, and today serves clients in all 92 counties.
About the National Health Law Program
Founded in 1969, the National Health Law Program (NHeLP) protects and advances the health rights of low-income and underserved individuals and families. NHeLP advocates, educates, and litigates at the federal and state levels. Our lawyers and policy experts fight every day for the rights of the tens of millions of people struggling to access affordable, quality health care coverage free from discrimination. For more information, visit http://www.healthlaw.org/.
Civil Rights Complaint Alleges Abuse in Dialysis Treatment
Andy DiAntonio
Washington, DC - The Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West and the National Health Law Program have filed…
FDA Eases Restrictions on Medication Abortion
WASHINGTON, DC - Yesterday, the FDA announced updates to how and where the medication abortion drug, mifepristone, can be dispensed…
California Future of Abortion Council Releases New Report with Recommendations to Protect & Expand Abortion Access in California
45 Recommendations Provide Blueprint for California Policymakers to Prepare State as Threat to Abortion Rights and Access IncreasesSACRAMENTO —…


text:
class WXDLLIMPEXP_CORE wxWithImages
{
public:
    enum
    {
        NO_IMAGE = -1
    };

    wxWithImages()
    {
        m_imageList = NULL;
        m_ownsImageList = false;
    }

    virtual ~wxWithImages()
    {
        FreeIfNeeded();
    }

    // Sets the image list to use, it is *not* deleted by the control.
    virtual void SetImageList(wxImageList* imageList)
    {
        FreeIfNeeded();
        m_imageList = imageList;
    }

    // As SetImageList() but we will delete the image list ourselves.
    void AssignImageList(wxImageList* imageList)
    {
        SetImageList(imageList);
        m_ownsImageList = true;
    }

    // Get pointer (may be NULL) to the associated image list.
    wxImageList* GetImageList() const { return m_imageList; }

protected:
    // Return true if we have a valid image list.
    bool HasImageList() const { return m_imageList != NULL; }

    // Return the image with the given index from the image list.
    //
    // If there is no image list or if index == NO_IMAGE, silently returns
    // wxNullIcon.
    wxIcon GetImage(int iconIndex) const
    {
        return m_imageList && iconIndex != NO_IMAGE
                    ? m_imageList->GetIcon(iconIndex)
                    : wxNullIcon;
    }

private:
    // Free the image list if necessary, i.e. if we own it.
    void FreeIfNeeded()
    {
        if ( m_ownsImageList )
        {
            delete m_imageList;
            m_imageList = NULL;

            // We don't own it any more.
            m_ownsImageList = false;
        }
    }

    // The associated image list or NULL.
    wxImageList* m_imageList;

    // False by default, if true then we delete m_imageList.
    bool m_ownsImageList;

    wxDECLARE_NO_COPY_CLASS(wxWithImages);
};

#endif // _WX_WITHIMAGES_H_

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


FaZe Clan is an American esports organization that have roosters in games such as Call of Duty, Overwatch, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Fortnite Battle Royale and FIFA. The team was originally founded as a gaming channel on YouTube by players known as FaZe Housecat (later renamed Timid), FaZe Resistance, FaZe ClipZ and FaZe SmokeDaDope who all started out by creating trick shot videos for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. In 2012, the team decided to expand into the competitive scene and furthermore added CS:GO directors to the FaZe clan creative rooster, this is referred to as FaZe 2.0.
FaZe Clan Roster. Find the latest settings, best gaming gear and sensitivity used by competitive pro players from FaZe Clan esports team. Our database and list include FaZe Clan players stats, DPI, keybindings, mouse settings, ViewModel, configs, resolution, crosshair as well as video & graphics settings. Besides this, we have also collected the players' hardware setups including which gaming mouse, headset, keyboard, monitor, chair and mousepad they use.


text:
Home/Eligibility
EligibilityKylie2021-05-11T11:02:18+00:00
Who is eligible for participation in the Stoma Appliance Scheme?
To access stoma related products under the SAS, a person must:
have a temporary or permanent artificial body opening (created surgically or otherwise) which facilitates the removal of urine and/or products of the gastrointestinal tract where the person does not have normal gastrointestinal tract or bladder functions, and provide evidence, consisting of a certificate from a registered medical practitioner or STN in an approved form (PB049);
be an eligible person within the meaning of the Health Insurance Act 1973. An eligible person means an Australian resident or an eligible overseas resident;
reside in Australia in order to receive stoma-related products under the SAS (products will not be supplied under the Scheme if a period of more than six months is spent overseas); and
have one of the following forms of identifying information which must be provided as part of a claim for payment for the supply of a product:
a current Medicare or Department of Veterans' Affairs entitlement number;
a current Australian Reciprocal Medicare Card number (if the person is a resident of a country that has signed a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement with Australia); or
a current passport number if the person is a resident of New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland.
Reciprocal Healthcare Agreements
Visitors to Australia who are eligible to receive benefits under a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement (RHCA) can access stoma-related products under the SAS for the period of their stay in Australia by virtue of subsection 7(2) of the Health Insurance Act 1973.
There is no legislative basis for visitors to Australia to be excluded from receiving products through programs subsidised under Section 9A of the National Health Act 1953 (unless the Guidelines for the program specifically state the exclusion). Therefore, access to benefits under the RHCAs should be honoured by the SAS.
The RHCAs do not exclude pre‑existing conditions from eligibility; the only exclusion is 'medical tourism', where someone enters Australia for the express purpose of receiving treatment. It is at the discretion of the stoma association as to whether the visitor is required to become a temporary association member.
Norfolk Island members
From 1 July 2016 mainland Australian taxation, social security, immigration, biosecurity, customs and health arrangements, including Medicare and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, were extended to Norfolk Island. Ostomates residing in Norfolk Island must still satisfy the definition of an 'SAS participant' and meet general eligibility requirements.


We offer legal representation to file personal or business claims with insurance companies have refused to pay for coverage of damage to homes or businesses or have an underpayment to the consumer.
The lawyer Ignacio G. Martinez defends the rights of people who have been arrested for a misdemeanor, State or Federal felonies.
The international area of our office is able to implement legal strategies needed to do business in Mexico and the United States (Cross-Border Transactions).
We offer comprehensive legal services by a professional staff who will defend your case as it was their own.


text:
Don't Let the Trump vs. Cruz Fight Destroy the Conservative Movement
5 Reasons Why We Can't Accommodate Transgenders in the Military
1:00PM EDT 7/27/2017	 Ryan T. Anderson/Heritage Foundation
(Reuters photo)
On Wednesday, President Donald Trump announced that he was reversing an Obama-era policy that opened the military to people who identify as transgender.
That policy, announced during the last year of President Barack Obama's second term, was scheduled to go into effect earlier this month, but Secretary of Defense James Mattis announced a six-month delay in its implementation to review whether it was in fact prudent given the nature of the military and its mission.
The mission of our armed forces is winning wars and protecting the nation. So any personnel policy must prioritize military readiness and mission-critical purposes first.
Trump's announcement that it would not be feasible to open the military to personnel who identify as transgender returns the military to the policy it had always observed, before the Obama administration's 12th-hour, politically driven imposition of a transgender agenda.
The best biology, psychology and philosophy conclude that sex is a biological reality and that gender is the social expression of that reality. The most helpful therapies for gender dysphoria focus not on achieving the impossible—changing bodies to conform to thoughts and feelings—but on helping people accept and even embrace the truth about their bodies and reality.
Unfortunately, 41 percent of people who identify as transgender will attempt suicide at some point in their lives, compared to 4.6 percent of the general population. And people who have had transition surgery are 19 times more likely than average to die by suicide.
People who identify as transgender suffer a host of mental health and social problems—including anxiety, depression and substance abuse—at higher rates than the general population. Biology isn't bigotry, and we need a sober and honest assessment of the human costs of getting human nature wrong.
So there were well-justified concerns that Obama was using the military to advance the latest social justice culture warrior agenda item—seeking to mainstream transgender identities and promote controversial therapies for gender dysphoria.
Obama's policy change ignored the reality that placing individuals who might be at increased risk for suicide or other psychological injury in the most stressful situation imaginable—the battlefield—is reckless.
But even people who disagree about the underlying transgender issues should acknowledge that there are practical concerns for the military when it comes to people who identify as transgender.
Wednesday's announcement reflects good reasons why transgender accommodations are incompatible with military realities. Here are just a few of the considerations:
1. The privacy of service members must not be infringed. This means that no soldiers, including those who identify as transgender, should be allowed to use the sex-specific facility of the opposite sex. When it comes to barracks, bathroom, showers and other similar facilities, the privacy of all service members must be respected. Given the nature of military living quarters, it is unclear where soldiers who identify as transgender would be housed.
2. All service members must remain combat-ready at all times. But soldiers who have transitioned medically require regular hormone treatments and follow-up visits after sex-reassignment surgery. It is unclear how someone who has transitioned would be able to deploy.
3. All service members must be held to the same physical fitness standards, and these standards are based on the reality of biological sex, not subjective gender identity. Men who identify as women should not be held to a lower standard than other men—they should be held to the standard for someone with their body that the military has determined is most effective for combat.
4. Scarce taxpayer monies should not be expended on costly and controversial sex-reassignment therapies. This is particularly the case as growing foreign threats are stretching our military's resources and as we struggle as a nation to provide basic health care to all. But it is unclear how soldiers who identify as transgender would pay for their treatments, apart from the government including coverage in Tricare, the military health care program.
5. The medical judgment, conscience rights and religious liberty of military doctors, chaplains, commanding officers and fellow service members needs to be respected.
Unless and until military leaders are able to find a way to respect all of these provisions, there will remain good reasons why the military will be unable to accommodate people who identify as transgender.
Ryan T. Anderson is the William E. Simon senior research fellow in American Principles and Public Policy at The Heritage Foundation.
This article was originally published at DailySignal.com. Used with permission.
Related topics: Military | Transgender


Simple PHP Page Template Lovely Made Simple Reviews Design Resource Simple PHP Website Template Free is free HD wallpaper. This wallpaper was upload at October 18, 2018 upload by content in .
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As an architect who specializes in early-stage concept design, architectural sketching and rapid visualization, I get to serve as one-stop shop for realtors, developers and prospective homeowners wanting to study their options before committing to buying an important property, or before engaging a "high profile" architect who, given the pressures of running a large practice, might just assign the exercise to a couple of talented in-house designers anyway.
In the collaboration posted here, I worked with a Boston developer to sketch (in a fraction of the time required by a larger firm) the look and feel of a 120-unit, future-looking condo project in a prosperous Boston suburb.
Everyone knows that house portraits in watercolor, pen and ink or pencil make striking and memorable gifts. Think of the people you know who have either commissioned or received house portraits. Chances are they hold pride of place in their picture galleries, and they've probably been inspired to print them on holiday cards and stationery as well.
What is less well known is that house portraits in watercolor, pen and ink or pencil have measurable value when it comes to selling your home. They capture your home in its best light, grabbing attention over the repetitive photographs that fill the storefront window at the realtor's office, or blur together in the the real estate section of the paper.


text:
What can I afford? A family wonders whether they can buy in Manhattan at all–or if they're better off looking elsewhere
Brick Underground // Jun 29, 2017
As the rental market slows and concessions rise, sales in Manhattan continue to be brisk: According to recent market reports, transactions—and average sales prices—have picked up in the borough. The expense of buying in Manhattan seems to be such that even high-earning New Yorkers wonder whether it's realistic to purchase here. Ann and Madison Smith, for instance, (note: names changed to protect the buyers' financial privacy), who are currently renting in Manhattan, would love to invest in a home for themselves, their two small children, and their pet beagle, but Ann says, "We basically don't think we could ever—or really, in the near future—afford to buy a place in Manhattan that we'd want to live in."
What they really want is a three-bedroom in a doorman building—a pet-friendly one, of course. That said, while the couple is committed to staying in the city, the Smiths are open to considering suburban-lite options like Riverdale or parts of Queens, where their budget could stretch a lot further. She also wonders whether they should scrap the idea of buying in the city entirely, and instead purchase a second home in the country and continue to rent in NYC, an increasingly common practice, as Brick has covered previously.
If they can't afford their own slice of Manhattan, Ann says, "We could do with a patch of greenery to call our own, and some quiet."
So which will it be? To find out what the couple's wisest move might be, we consulted mortgage broker Sean McPartland of the McPartland Team at PNC Bank (this article's sponsor) and real estate agent John Harrison of CORE for their suggestions.
The Finances:
Annual income: $450,000
Retirement savings: $125,000
Cash on hand for down payment: $150,000
Regular monthly expenses: $15,000
Credit score: 725
The Analysis:
The primary challenge for these buyers is one that many of their peers face: The down payment. As we've written about in the past, the down payment tends to be the biggest hurdle for New Yorkers, due to the high cost of real estate here. In addition to the 20 percent down that co-ops typically expect from buyers, boards also want to see that they have two years' worth of post-closing liquidity to cover mortgage and maintenance payments.
"They have strong income, but the amount of cash on hand they have for a down payment and closing costs is going to affect what they can afford," McPartland says. "We get this scenario often."
Given this, the Smiths may want to focus on condos, where the restrictions for financing are more lax. Unlike co-ops, condos do not usually have financing minimums, which means the prospective buyers can borrow more and put down less up front. Condos are also more lenient than co-ops about post-closing liquidity, so the buyers needn't worry about demonstrating they have two years' worth. However, closing costs on condos–which can include broker's commission, taxes, title insurance, and more–are generally higher than they are for co-ops, usually about 4 to 5 percent of the purchase price.
McPartland notes that PNC Bank offers some co-op and condo buyers 90 percent financing, through a combined mortgage and home equity line of credit that allows them to make smaller down payments and have more flexibility. Using this approach, the couple could afford to consider homes selling for up to $1.25 million. They'd first take out a fixed, 30-year mortgage for $1 million (that is, 80 percent of the home's cost) and then a home equity line of credit of $125,000 for another 10 percent. Their $150,000 in cash on hand could then cover a ten percent down payment and closing costs.
A home equity line of credit can be paid back at a variable rate, depending on how many years the homeowners would opt to take. McPartland estimates that monthly payments on a 30-year mortgage with an interest rate fixed at 3.5 percent would amount to $4,490; repaying their home equity loan over five years would be a monthly cost of $383. This means total monthly housing costs would come to $4,873—a little higher than their current $4,695 rent, but not including common charges or maintenance charges, likely to be in the $2,500-$3,000 range or more.
Even with a budget of $1.25 million, though, McPartland says that the couple's desired three-bedroom in a doorman building will be tough to find in Manhattan. They'd likely have better luck in Queens or Riverdale, as Ann suggested.
"Buying a primary home in Manhattan really stretches their budget," McPartland says. As for the question of whether they should continue to rent in NYC and instead purchase a country house, he notes that most second homes require 20 percent down, which would mean they'd be considering places in the $600,000 to $700,000 range.
"I would take that starting point of $1.25 million and see what that gets you in the city," he concludes.
The would-be buyers react:
"This is basically what we had figured we could afford right now," Ann says, adding that her suspicions seem to be confirmed that the perfect fit for her family might be out of reach in Manhattan. While they're not interested in heading to the 'burbs, Ann says that the family would think about outerborough neighborhoods like Riverdale, Long Island City, or even Hoboken.
That said, she notes, "I find the country house option more appealing, I think. Best of both worlds!". But she wonders what the family could afford outside the city while maintaining their apartment, with its $4,695 per month rent. She's also concerned about finding sufficient funds to cover closing costs.
What's available to the buyers now:
CORE broker John Harrison has good news and bad news for the prospective buyers. He points out that their ability to get 90 percent financing doesn't mean finding a condo will be a breeze. "While many condo buildings may allow such a down payment, you must think about the competition from other buyers," he says. "Just because the building will allow it doesn't mean that the owner will choose you over someone else that is willing to put at least 25 percent or more down."
On the other hand, he adds, the buyers shouldn't necessarily go for the country house just yet.
"This particular family seems to want to at least consider sticking around if they can make the numbers work. While they could always go the route of buying a second home upstate as a getaway, that alone would still not solve their problem of where and how to live locally, given that even to rent a large space in the city costs quite a bit."
It isn't impossible to find the right space in Manhattan: Harrison says that Hamilton Heights in Upper Manhattan is one of his favorite enclaves for its proximity to Riverside Park, multiple transit options, burgeoning neighborhood amenities, and affordability relative to the rest of Manhattan. It's also home to this condo at 603 West 148th Street, which, while it has two bedrooms rather than three, is spacious and comes with a number of perks.
With an asking price of $850,000 and carrying costs of less than $1,300 per month, this is a real possibility for the buyers, says Harrison. He adds, "Given the building's tax abatement, outdoor space, gym, and proximity to the park, this could serve their needs well." And it won't be tough for them to head upstate for getaways.
For more options, he advises the buyers to look toward Brooklyn. Harrison points to this two-bedroom condo at 150 Myrtle Street in Downtown Brooklyn as a great choice for families: "It is also almost directly across from the brand new City Point development which also includes a Target, Trader Joes, and the DeKalb Market Hall food court. It is near a number of transportation options and a short walk to Fort Greene Park, which is exciting for the kids," he points out. Plus, there's a children's playroom in the building. The asking price is $895,000 and carrying costs are quite low, at under $1,000 per month.
Harrison says the family may appreciate the townhouse feel of this Bed-Stuy condo conversion in a landmarked brownstone, at 43 Halsey Street. The two-bedroom, two-bath home has been updated with high-end fixtures, and retains prewar details as well. Extra storage in the basement will also be a coup for a family. And the asking price is right, at $799,000.
In Riverdale, one of the neighborhoods the Smiths mentioned they'd be open to exploring, this condo seems to fit the bill in several ways. It's a three-bedroom, two-bath with a balcony and in-unit washer and dryer. Plus, building amenities include a parking spot, gym, and additional storage space. Asking price: $738,000. Common charges and taxes: $888.
Original Article: Brick Underground


For the second time this month, Ben has been recognised for his hard work and dedication to the company.
Ben received a Highly Commended in the Family Business Director of the Year category at this year's Institute of Directors, Director of the Year UK Final Awards, last week. Ben took over as MD in 2007, succeeding his Father Bill who is now Chairman of Clogau. Sister, Sam Roberts, also works alongside as Creative Designer to bring you generous helpings of glorious jewellery.
After winning Young Director of the Year – North Wales at the regional awards earlier in the year, Ben qualified for the UK Finals where he was awarded this most recent accolade – well done Ben!
The Clogau Wales Polo Team are back for Wales' most glamorous social event!


text:
China and Nicaragua renew relations with the United States and Taiwan
Finance Ministry welcomes US push for Taiwan tax deal
G7 finance ministers make progress on tax deal, UK says
Victoria Grand Prix canceled with Jeff Kennett slamming state as 'shrinking'
Ways To Make Money Online Without Blogging
Mark Allen Smith Joins White Oak Commercial Finance as Managing Director in Midwest
NEW YORK–(COMMERCIAL THREAD) – White Oak Commercial Finance ("White Oak"), a subsidiary of White Oak Global Advisors, is pleased to welcome Mark Allen Smith as Managing Director of Originations with responsibilities spanning the Midwest, Mid-US United and Canada. He will be based in Chicago and will report to Vice President Andy McGhee.
Mr. Smith has nearly 30 years of financial services experience with expertise in mergers and acquisitions, capital advice and restructuring and special situations across a range of industries. Prior to joining White Oak, he was Founder and Managing Partner of Sentinel Capital Advisors, was Managing Director of Hilco Global and Director of Metals for Houlihan Lokey. In addition, Mr. Smith served as Managing Director of FTI Consulting, Metals Director for HSBC Securities Americas and Managing Director of ABN AMRO, where he managed the North American Metals Investment Banking team.
Mr. Smith is a graduate of Indiana University, where he obtained his undergraduate degrees in finance and economics. He received his MBA from Kellogg Northwestern University. Mr. Smith is a FINRA 79 and 63 licensee and has a Six Sigma Green Belt.
"Mark is viewed as both a very effective business leader and a competent advisor to the companies he serves," said Mr. McGhee. "He has managed a number of complex transactions and his experience in mergers and acquisitions, capital structuring and raising and special situations provides him with a unique perspective that will benefit White Oak and its clients. "
White Oak is dedicated to helping businesses get the most from their assets with flexible and scalable financing, up to $ 250 million, and provides businesses with the full suite of solutions, industry expertise and loan capital. they need to invest in growth.
For more information, visit www.whiteoaksf.com/commercialfinance/.
ABOUT WHITE OAK COMMERCIAL FINANCE, LLC
White Oak Commercial Finance, LLC (WOCF) is a global financial products and services company providing credit facilities to businesses across the economy. WOCF's solutions include Asset Lending, Full Service Factoring, Bill Discounting, Government Contract Funding, Lender Funding, Supply Chain Funding, Inventory Funding, Funding import / export to the United States, trade credit risk management, accounts receivable management, and credit and collection assistance. The company has offices and staff in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia, including New York, San Francisco, Charlotte, Washington DC, Atlanta, Los Angeles, London, Glasgow and Sydney. WOCF is a subsidiary of White Oak Global Advisors, LLC and its institutional clients. More information can be found at www.whiteoaksf.com/commercialfinance/.
About White Oak Global Advisors
White Oak Global Advisors, LLC (WOGA) is a leading alternative debt manager specializing in the creation and delivery of financing solutions to facilitate the growth, refinancing and recapitalization of small and medium businesses. Together with its financing subsidiaries, WOGA offers more than twenty loan products in the market, including term, asset and equipment loans, to all sectors of the economy. Since its inception in 2007, WOGA and its affiliates have deployed more than $ 10 billion across its product lines, utilizing a disciplined investment process that focuses on delivering risk-adjusted returns on investment to investors while establishing long-term partnerships with our borrowers. More information can be found at www.whiteoaksf.com.
Warren Buffett: "Five 'lesser known' things UK investors could learn from investors | Personal Finances | Finance
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Woman defying Taliban over girls' education


text:
Old Farmer's Almanac Releases Winter Predictions For Northland
Lauren Wells Published: August 19, 2020
Roger Mcclean
Winter is coming...whether we like it or not. By the sounds of it, it looks like it could be a mild one in the Northland.
The Old Farmer's Almanac released their predictions for the 2020 - 2021 winter season. So what can we expect? Here's a breakdown, according to forecasters:
According to the Old Farmer's Almanac, things will be mild across the country. Forecasters say they don't expect this winter to be "extremely cold" anywhere, thanks to rising temperature trends across the nation.
The Old Farmer's Almanac is predicting "a light winter" for most of the country along with warmer-than-normal temperatures.
Snowfall totals will be above normal for Minnesota and a good chunk of Wisconsin. The Old Farmer's Almanac says it will be very wet in our region.
As for when the snow will fall most in our region, the Old Farmer's Almanac says the snowiest periods will be in late December, early and late January, late February and early March.
As mentioned above, temperatures will be above average across the country, including in our region. Our chilliest periods will be in December, late January and late February.
Last, we can't rule out a few periods of what the Old Farmer's Almanac calls "chilly winter rainy periods" despite the fact that we will see a warmer-than-average winter.
I don't know about you but this definitely makes me less anxious about this winter! The Old Farmer's Almanac makes long-term weather predictions by region and not everyone believes in the methodology behind their forecasts. Our region includes most of Minnesota and Wisconsin, and a piece of Michigan as well.
I guess we will have to wait and see if this forecast comes true!
10 Reasons You Should Love Winter In The Northland
Filed Under: minnesota, prediction, snow, Weather, winter, wisconsin
Categories: Featured, Minnesota News, Weather
Wisconsin's Herman Uihlein House On The Market For $5.95 Million
How Long Do You Have To Shovel Your Sidewalk In Duluth + Superior After It Snows?
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Old Farmer's Almanac Releases February 2023 Outlook
Safari Whitetail Resort In Minong Hits Market For $4.275 Million
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Cold Blast On The Way For Duluth + Superior
17 Things Kids Do In The Winter That Drive Minnesota Parents Nuts


(Jim Tester, b. 1913, d. 1995, friend, mentor and Sudbury trade union activist and historian, was also a long-time columnist at Northern Life, Sudbury's community newspaper. The following column was first published there February 22, 1984).
February 24. A day working people should never forget. It is the anniversary date of a dirty deed unsurpassed in Sudbury's history. There was not a word about it, not even a whisper, during our 100th birthday celebrations. It has been left buried in a conspiracy of silence. Yet it was an event that so shook Sudbury; our city was never the same. It marked the end of an era and the beginning of a new one.


For those who can't wait for each individual entry to appear in the website here's a short extract of its contents.
Silver Balls            - for decorating birthday cakes with. Also LOC foil!
And here's the original file, as of 15th December 2009.
Actually, the waiting's over. Each item in the original list has been lovingly transformed into a bigram. Now we're waiting for a nice theme with a UI that makes searching bearable.


Great service provided by Sars Garzelli and Jack Perry at the Surrey Quay office. Very professional and friendly people who go the extra way to get things done. They always help you make an informed decision.


text:
Children must report abuse so that the culprits can be arrested
News - Date: 25 December 2021
Written by: Silas Nduvheni / Viewed: 745
"All children in our country have the right to better education," said the executive mayor of Vhembe District, Cllr Dowelani Nenguda, during the 2021 Children's-Rights Awareness Campaign held at the Maniini All Black Sports Grounds on Friday, 10 December.
Nenguda was joined by the traditional leader of Maniini village, Vhamusanda Ndamulelo Mmbi, representatives from various departments, and the children's ambassador, Zwothe Ratshilumela.
"There is no reason for children not to be in school as the government has made provision for children whose parents cannot afford to pay school fees. Our district also has a mayoral bursary fund, and we urge Grade 12 learners to take advantage of the bursary and apply," Nenguda said. He added that children had the right to report all forms of abuse, so that the culprits could get arrested and face up to their deeds.
Tebogo Raliphanda, the coordinator of Vhembe District's Special Programme, said they felt launching the campaign was important as children should know their rights at home, as well as in the communities they live. He said they had invited various relevant departments, such as education, social development, and justice, among others, to allow them to speak to the children about their rights.
Many cases of rape at Maniini and other surrounding villages, such as Muledane, had been reported at the Thohoyandou Police Station, where some of the culprits have been charged.
In a recent case, the Sibasa Regional Court sentenced Murendeni Siliga (22) and Omphulusa Ramakuela (27) from Muledane village on Friday, 22 October of this year to life imprisonment for rape, five years for kidnapping and three years for robbery.
According to Zwothe Ratshilumela, child abuse can occur in schools, at home or even while playing with other children. She strongly advised abused children to speak up and report it to the police.
Vhamusanda Ndamulelo Mmbi said he was worried that his village was also labelled as a crime hot-spot. He encouraged young people in his village to get involved in sports, such as soccer and netball, and participate in cultural dances, such as malende, tshifasi and tshikona, to keep them busy after school.
From left to right: The traditional leader of Maniini village, Vhamusanda Ndamulelo Mmbi, the executive mayor of Vhembe District, Cllr Dowelani Nenguda, and the children's ambassador, Zwothe Ratshilumela, photographed during the Children's-Rights Awareness Campaign, which was held at the Maniini All Black Sports Grounds on Friday, 10 December. Photo: Silas Nduvheni.
Silas Nduvheni


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An interview with John Will: Part 2
[This is a continuation of an interview I conducted with John Will for SportFM in April 2010. In this Part, John talks about his introduction to, and early training in BJJ, his unique experiences in the Indian art of vajramushti and some of his personal philosophy on training and life in general. This is a very special interview - so enjoy!
See also Part 1.]
DD: You were just talking about the importance of immersing yourself in experience, learning, and you did all that - you gave yourself the opportunity to learn BJJ from the Machado family. I believe you were one of the original "dirty dozen" - the first twelve westerners, or non-Brazilians, to achieve black belt status in BJJ.
JW: I think I was number 8. Something... I think I was number 8. Yeah, I started back... it was '87 I think when I first kicked off on it. And that was five years before the UFC or something like that. Going to Brazil, over in America and then going to Brazil. I befriended Rigan Machado, who was great. I went to Rorion Gracie's over in Los Angeles for my first lesson. He was charging US$100 for half an hour - that was in 1987! I only had $500 to my name, so that's 5 lessons and my life savings was gone. So I rocked up and had lessons one, two, three and four with him in his garage at that time. He was only teaching out of his garage. The fifth lesson, he couldn't do it because he was going to take his kids to Disneyland. He said: "I've got my cousin here - he'll do it."
So Rigan Machado was there. Couldn't speak a word of English. And I had the fifth lesson with Rigan who was paying $2 an hour. So Rigan was working for peanuts, just barely making enough to feed himself. And at the end of the lesson - which was by far the best lesson I'd had - because I'd run out of money I took of my jacket, took off my jumper, anything with Australia on it, you know a kangaroo and a couple of hats or something, and gave him some Australian paraphernalia - a bag with a kangaroo on it - and just gave it to him. Then I went back home.
I saved up for six months with the intention of not doing that again, but going there for one lesson which I could pay for, getting the information where I could train in Brazil. Because I figured "Brazil, it's got to be free - it's a third world country". It's not true, but that was my perception. So went back over there, rocked up and said: "Here's my one lesson, and by the way, I want to go down to Brazil so maybe you could give me an address - an address down there to train." Rorion said: "Come on out, no problem." I come out there, he said to me: "Sorry I can't train today, I got to take my kids to Disneyland again," or whatever. "But my cousin's still here and he took a few lessons last time - remember? You want to do it with him?" I go: "Sure."
I come to Rigan. By this time he's learned the rudiments of the English language. He says "My friend! From Australia!" I went: "Wow, he remembers me!" He's still wearing the cap I gave him. [Laughs] So, you know, be kind to world Brazilian jujitsu champions. He took me in there, taught me a great lesson, and I said: "I want to go to Brazil." He leaned across the mat, he said: "Listen, don't stay here, these people know nothing. Get with me, go to Brazil, that's the place to learn." I said: "I want to go." He says": "I'm going tomorrow - come with me." So we went together.
I didn't know who he was. I just knew he was really good. We went to Brazil, started training down there, I walk into a place called "Barra Gracie". At that time that was the capital of the Gracie thing. That was owned by three of the Machado brothers and Carlos Gracie junior - all partners. So I walk in there and I do a lesson. I did a week of training and Rigan was teaching classes and I thought "Geez, an academy whatever, he's pretty good.
I'm sitting over the side one night and all these legends walk in - apparently they were Brazilian national champions. And Renzo Gracie was sitting next to me. And he could speak English - he was about the only guy who could. And he said: "Look at all these legends walking in; this guy's this champion, he's that champion." And I go: "Why are they coming here - is there something special on?" And he goes: "They've come to train with him." And Rigan's sitting next to me. I looked past Rigan. "With who?" I'm looking down the hall. "With him - with Rigan!" says Renzo. I go: "With this goofy guy?" Rigan's just my goofy mate. He says: "Don't you know who he is?" And I go: "I dunno - his name's Rigan." He says: "John, he's been undefeated in Brazil for twelve years, blah, blah, blah, he's the best guy in the country." I go: "This goofy guy?" [Laughs]
So I kind of fell into the right family and ended up training with all the top guys there and that was really, really good.
DD: Wow, that's really an incredible story! So after that you obviously carried on training. Did you change your own school's curriculum back in Australia to BJJ?
JW: I did, but I didn't want to because I didn't feel qualified. I dabbled, you know. I wove some of it in to the tapestry I was already involved with. So I wove some of it in, I kept doing that and involved more and more of it. It was only when I was a black belt that I finally felt...
DD: That was in '98, I think you said.
JW: Yes, that's when I really started to teach BJJ in its pure form - in and of its own right.
PM: Were the trips up into southeast Asia and India a bridge to you getting interested in BJJ? Because prior to that everything you were looking at was stand-up...
JW: I grappled in India...
PM: I think you did kalaripayat?
JW: Kalaripayat. I did some kalari down south. I did a lot of wrestling in the north. Not a lot, I did some. I did some vajramushti, which is pretty interesting.
PM: Was that, like, a bit of an eye-opener, a bit of a new direction for you to go because it was after that when I think you came back that you started...
JW: I became pretty fascinated with the vajramushti which was vale tudo - no rules martial arts - with a knuckle-duster strapped to your right hand. That's interesting. They were doing stuff back then that people are doing now. They were doing omoplatas, all kinds of technical ground moves. They had guard. And I remember going to the State reference library in New Delhi and there were only 2 books on it. Now there's only one! [Laughs] It's a valuable book! They're not reading it - Indians aren't interested in this art that was pretty much dead. There was this family called Jesemala. And the Jesemala clan were the only ones allowed to do it - it was passed by law - only ones allowed to do it, no one else was allowed. So it was dangerous. It was no-rules fighting with a knuckle-duster tied to your right hand. Grappling and punching each other in the head.
And I found this book, did some research, went down to the State of Gujarat to the city of Baroda. The only hint I had was in the book; it was printed in Baroda in 1940. I went to Baroda, to the university, got a translator. I figured the guy's a Vaishnava, which is like a person who worships Krishna (because they have their heads shaved and a little ponytail). So I thought to myself, I'll just go to the nearest Viashnava temple, I'll show them the photo in the book and I'll say: "Do you know this family?"
So I walked up a dusty old street with this university student in tow as a translator. I went to the priest and said: "Hey, look at this guy in here. Jesemala." [I] ask him: "Have you ever heard of this family?" I went to the oldest priest I could find. The guy pointed across the road, frowned at me and said: "Go over there and ask those guys across the road."
I walked across the road and knocked on the door. You're never going to believe who opened the door. The guy in the photo! Like, seriously weird. That's the weirdest experience of my entire life. Two million people live in that city. I knock on the door, he opens it and I nearly fall over dead. I looked at the book - his eyes nearly jumped out because he hadn't seen that book for 30 years. And he was extraordinary. Monster of a man: six foot one, scarred to hell and all that. That's what they did. Boy, they were serious.
DD: As Paul was saying, did that give you an inkling of what you wanted to pursue, technically?
JW: I think so. I think the strangest... landing on that guy's doorstep! The chances... I've since had Indians email me - dozens of them - trying to find out. They can't find out! A white boy jumps over there, rocks up, spends half an hour, knocks on his front door. That's cool! So the weirdness of it probably added a lot to that. And they took me around, showed me some stuff and I thought "I want that" but they couldn't teach me much because it was pretty much a dead art at that point. And I'm sure it's dead now. They wouldn't be alive any more. He was 80 then.
DD: As you were saying in your seminar, people want to participate but they don't want to take ownership of the material and sadly you get... you lose some of these top people, and if people under them haven't taken ownership of the material, made it their own, then it tends to die out. That's certainly been my experience chasing information.
JW: It's the Y Generation. You and I, and our kids and their kids and their kids, we can all evolve, move on, add to it, pass it on, pass it on; one generation doesn't want to do it - you have to start again. So who says that great arts weren't already worked out a long time ago. It only takes one generation for it not to happen. Someone passes a law, some king says you can't do that any more, and it's all over. And then someone has to start afresh because there's no video, there are no references, there are no photos.
DD: I want to go back to some of the things you've said in your book because again, I think they fit into the conversation we're having quite well. One of things you mention is the need to "walk the tightrope" as you call it - not wait until you have the skill, but just go in there and "give it a go". How has that philosophy affected your martial arts career.
JW: For me, it's always been important. [There are] a lot of traditional learning models and teaching models that I very much disagree with, because they haven't been thought out by professional educators. People have been handed the mantle of teaching with no teaching skills. They haven't been taught to be teachers. They've been taught to be practitioners of certain things and suddenly one day they go: "You're a teacher now." Oh am I? Nowadays I study teaching ideas - I'm always updating myself on those kinds of things to teach the military and police and professional educators and I have to be very much at the forefront of how to educate people.
DD: And certainly my experience has been that, say, you want to learn grappling, you can't just "think of it" or "try a bit" or look at theory. You have to actually get in there and start doing it. I suppose that's the answer isn't it?
JW: I say you don't get tightrope balance and then walk the tightrope. You have to get on the tightrope and then your brain says: "Oh, you need that balance - here it is," and starts giving it to you. So you've got to do the thing. Like surfing: you jump on a board, you fall off and your brain says: "Oh, you need to do that - okay." And it starts giving you the skills that create the hardwiring for it. I can't sit on the beach and wait till I get the skill, and then do it. I've got to do it and be involved. So with that comes [the fact that] you have to be able to embrace losing and embrace so-called "failure". And you've got to be okay with that. And not everyone is. I mean, the easiest way to not fail as we all know is just not start. Not try.
DD: I've been involved in martial arts for 30 years myself and I've discovered that many of the things I thought were impossible weren't impossible. I realised they were quite possible - all I needed to do was start it or try it. And I guess that's the answer to all martial arts skills.
JW: Yeah, give it a shot. And not [just] martial arts. Buying houses and working out relationships [etc.]. You've got to get in there and you've got to do it.
DD: Now as I've mentioned, I've been in the martial arts for a while and I've heard many a "stand-up fighter" say on that note: "I'm too old or too far down the track of learning stand-up to learn grappling." What's your answer to that?
JW: Well, look at Helio Gracie. Okay, he started young, but he's on the mat at nearly 90 years of age. I've got students, and I've seen people start in their 50s and 60s, and do very, very well. So sometimes there are benefits. [There are] positives and negatives to everything.
One of the positives of starting older is that you haven't got all that angst and explosiveness and all that sort of stuff, so you actually settle right into the feeling, the kinaesthetic experience of the grapple and using your mind and superior leverage and superior understanding of biomechanics and all those things, which underpins the whole art of BJJ. So in some ways you have an advantage in starting older, when you've gotten rid of some of that "go juice". A lot of the time these young guys, that's the first thing: it takes you six months to get that out of them - to get them to relax into it.
DD: As you mentioned in your seminar, a lot of BJJ skill is knowing when it's your turn and when to let the person do whatever they're going to do in order to give you a chance at your turn. And I guess when you're young you don't want to pause...
JW: You want to hog the turns, that's right. [Laughs]
DD: On a similar note, I went to a seminar with a controversial taiji teacher who shall go nameless - this was about '89. This was shortly before I trained with you at one of your early BJJ seminars. And I remember him telling the class not to bother trying to beat a grappler at his own game and to concentrate on what you do best - which in his case was strikes, "dim mak" (death touches and this sort of thing). So what's your answer to that? I mean, I know a lot of stand-up fighters will say: "If I spend my time learning this skill I'll be taking time away, and I'll never beat the grappler at his own game."
JW: I think that, for a start, it's not about "beating" who or whatever. First of all, martial arts, I love it all. We're all in the martial arts and who's to say that people don't get as much out of doing taekwondo or wing chun than they do out of BJJ? What's the outcome you want? Do you want to be able to fight? Really? Do you really need that? Or is it more important for you to get new friends and lose some weight... So it depends on what you want! That's the first question I ask of the military guys or whatever: what outcome do you want? Okay, now we've got to plan for that.
DD: That's a very valid point. The question that was posed - and I did so deliberately to give you a chance to respond - was misconceived because it assumes one goal for a start.
JW: That's right. Exactly. So if you do want to "beat a grappler" for some strange reason - and that's the thing that you're out to do - and you're a stand-up fighter, then I say keep with your stand-up, work with your strength, whatever it is, but you need to learn something about grappling because who's most qualified to stay on their feet? A grappler. So learn some grappling. Even if you never want to go to the ground, you better learn grappling because then you're qualified to stay on your feet and keep smacking him in the head with good kickboxing or boxing skills. But if you say: "He'll never get me to the ground because I'm going to hit him with a jab and cross," you're deluded. He'll shoot your legs and you'll be on the ground in the blink of an eye and you'll be going "Oh my goodness!" So I say to people, learn grappling. Embrace it. That's how you learn to beat a grappler; you learn it so you don't have to go there. You are more qualified now to stay on your feet.
DD: I think some of the best MMA fighters today who are stand-up fighters have shown just that. They have a solid background in grappling. But they choose to carry on with the stand-up.
PM: Well that's a good point to highjack this direction a little because I know we're running low on time. One of the biggest sporting events to hit Australia recently is about to take place of course is UFC Australia at Acer Arena. And everyone from the promoters back were shocked to find that it basically sold on presale. They sold out the entire event. Now of course when you've had connections to people in this event and of course a lot of the earlier and other major figures in the, if you like, the fledgling aspects of the Australian MMA scene and even the guys who've been Stateside and UK as well... [indistinct] a few minutes to talk about that. Maybe George would feature prominently in everybody's interest at the moment - I know he's got a lot of people following...
JW: George Sotiropoulos was a very passionate martial artist, trained with me for a long time. I got him to black belt in BJJ before we kind of sent him overseas. Because he wanted to make a career out of it. And back when he got his black belt with me he [indistinct] ... difficult to make a career here so he took that advice and went overseas to America and he's done really well. He hasn't lost yet and won that, what was it called? "Ultimate Fighter" - he won that. [Then he went into] UFC and and he won that and [indistinct]. The UFC is great, but it is one small aspect. It's not everything. It's not about multiple opponents, it's not about street reality.
PM: But you have to agree that its profile draws a lot of people to BJJ.
JW: Oh, my goodness! I mean, it's unprecedented. Not only that, the UFC and the whole idea of mixed martial arts is the first time ever that I'm aware of that the martial arts have transcended... it's gone past the cultural barrier and gone into the fashion industry. I mean, Tap Out. People are wearing Tap Out gear who don't know anything about martial arts. Well, when's that happened before? So seriously, I've been saying this for 25 years but I guess people weren't listening. [Laughs] But yes, it was great over there when it first came out, the UFC. I couldn't believe it. I was a purple belt at the time and I remember being at Richard Norton's apartment saying: "Hey you guys, I reckon the skinny guy's going to win." They go: "No way!" I said: "Put your money on the table." I made a killing. "I'll tell you how he's going to win and I'll tell you why. And he's doing it." They go: "What are you talking about?" They thought I was some kind of mystic. [Laughs]
DD: You talk a lot in your book about the most important investment being in yourself. What do you mean by that?
JW: I think... first of all time is valuable. And as you get older we all become more aware of that. I think it's a natural thing. Most people become aware of it at some point, usually when their parents die. They say: "I'm next in line." That's something kids don't generally think about. But as you get older and you have experience you think "Time's short." You start to work out the next logical step and that is "Time's short, wow - that means what I have left is valuable. How am I going to spend that?"
And I think one of the best ways to spend it is on experience as opposed to on things. You know, cars and stuff. That's all good to have, these things, but I think they lose meaning. You buy a brand new Mercedes convertible and two months later on you're not getting the same joy out of it. You're getting the same joy out of it that you got out of your old Holden Commodore. But experience - that's changing you intrinsically. You're upgrading yourself the whole time. So I've got no problem investing in my own experience. That's how I invest my money - and my time. And I think that in doing that - in investing in yourself - there's no return that's better.
I mean, talking about finances, I invested one day in learning how to buy property. And in a further 2 hours I had one - apart from my own home. I've probably invested 12-13 hours total of my time to get 3 or 4 more properties which I nearly own now. That's good investment: [good] return on investment of time put in, compared to me shovelling dirt. So all the great things that happen, I don't think they happen from lots of little things. I think they happen from you doing some investment in yourself, learning something, and then trying to apply that knowledge in the real world.
DD: Most of us, including yours truly, have jobs that pay the bills but don't exactly match what we'd like to be doing. Is there a part of your job that you don't like?
JW: Not much. I love my job. I love pretty much everything about my job. And I'm okay now financially that I don't have to anything I don't want to do any more. So therefore, I'm choosy. If I don't want to teach, I don't have to. If I want to stop work tomorrow, I don't have to work any more. But I love doing what I'm doing.
DD: I'm sure as teacher of the martial arts you enjoy the act of teaching but it does take you away from your family, doesn't it? The travelling and so on.
JW: It does. Probably 20-25 weekends a year I'm away. That's the sacrifice I make. I try to be home during the week. And I try to make sure it's only on the weekends. But I enjoy being on the mat. Loved being here tonight. Love teaching the military. I love the diversity of my job. Australian Defence Force, sky marshals, Quantico in America, martial arts guys in serious schools. And there are schools that are not so serious. They're all different and I have to approach it differently in "What do these people want?" And then try to deliver it, bring them on and give them something real and tangible. So I love that.
DD: How much time do you spend at your own training centres in Melbourne and Geelong?
JW: Most of the time I'm at my school 3 or 4 nights a week.
PM: Can we just wander back for one second, you were talking about investing in your own experience and probably a lot of people out there might just relate that back again to the martial arts, but you do a lot of... In the '70s they would have given you your own TV show like the Leyland brothers. You do a lot of things that people probably don't associate with the marital arts per se. It seems that those experiences act as the release valve for everything else you do. You want to share a couple of those with the listeners?
JW: You know, I love lots of things. I like getting out in the wilds and I like travelling to Mongolia, Siberia, jumping out of helicopters in the Kakadu, in the remote Kimberlys, jumping off boats in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, swimming to uncharted islands and spending a week there. For 25 years I've been doing some radical adventure every year. Something really radical. I've got some really radical stuff in the pipelines. Something very much out of the ordinary, because I don't think we live in the now very much.
Our brains have evolved over all this time to do something that's good and bad. Our prefrontal lobes are an amazing evolutionary construct; what it allows us to do, it allows us to think about the future and dwell on the past. Animals can't do that. They live in the present. Well, we can go: "I need to plan for next week because this is going to happen - remember that happened way back then. And that ability allows us to invent things and be humans. But it also comes with a price. It's hard for us to live in the now.
Our brains keep taking us back to shit that happened 10 years ago and we're still dwelling on it and worrying about things that may or may not happen in the future. So I think to get back to living in the very moment we're in is something that more of us need to do more of. And I think that's one aspect of getting out in the wilds and doing that kind of stuff that pulls me right into the now. And I enjoy that - being in the now and living like that. So I think that's part of the appeal for me.
DD: Well one last question John. I know you don't have a planned life, but what does the next year hold for John Will?
JW: Pretty much my same seminar circuit. I've written a book this month already - the third book in a row/series - and when I go to England I know Geoff Thompson is going to rock up to me straight away in Coventry at dawn before we go for our morning walk through the park and he's going to say: "Where's your next book?" So I'm thinking of writing it before I arrive, just so I can slap him in the head with it. [Laughs] But I'll probably write another book.
One of the things I'm doing which hundreds and hundreds of people asked me for and I've resisted it for a while but I'm doing an online training subscription-based website which is going to be launched in about 6 weeks. So I'll be doing a lot of work for that - it's called "Fight Puzzle". Fightpuzzle.com. It'll be really cheap, $19 or something a month, but they go on there and I'll teach a class a couple of times per week. So I'm trying to do that and get it going. And there will also be a fair bit of work with special ops command and the Australian Defence Force in Canberra; there's some other work I've got to do with them later year. Things like that.
DD: Well, thanks for speaking with us tonight John, and Paul for hosting the event in your centre here at the Sozokan, and John I look forward to catching up with you when you next come to Perth.
JW: Thanks very much Dan. Thanks Paul.
PM: Thank you.
[Thanks to John for allowing me to use his personal photographs for this article.]
bjj John Will radio Rigan Machado SportFM
Trevor Aung Than September 27, 2011 at 10:07 PM
Fascinating account Dan. JW was a real pioneer! Glad you're back on the blog-wagon ; )
Locking your joints