text:
package org.apache.ignite.visor.commands.kill

import org.apache.ignite._
import org.apache.ignite.cluster.ClusterNode
import org.apache.ignite.internal.IgniteNodeAttributes._
import org.apache.ignite.internal.util.scala.impl
import org.apache.ignite.visor.VisorTag
import org.apache.ignite.visor.commands.common.VisorConsoleCommand
import org.apache.ignite.visor.visor._

import java.util.{Collections, UUID}

import scala.collection.JavaConversions._
import scala.language.{implicitConversions, reflectiveCalls}
import scala.util.control.Breaks._

/**
 * ==Overview==
 * Contains Visor command `kill` implementation.
 *
 * ==Help==
 * {{{
 * +--------------------------------+
 * | kill | Kills or restarts node. |
 * +--------------------------------+
 * }}}
 *
 * ====Specification====
 * {{{
 *     kill
 *     kill "-in|-ih"
 *     kill "{-r|-k} {-id8=<node-id8>|-id=<node-id>}"
 * }}}
 *
 * ====Arguments====
 * {{{
 *     -in
 *         Run command in interactive mode with ability to
 *         choose a node to kill or restart.
 *         Note that either '-in' or '-ih' can be specified.
 *
 *         This mode is used by default.
 *     -ih
 *         Run command in interactive mode with ability to
 *         choose a host where to kill or restart nodes.
 *         Note that either '-in' or '-ih' can be specified.
 *     -r
 *         Restart node mode.
 *         Note that either '-r' or '-k' can be specified.
 *         If no parameters provided - command starts in interactive mode.
 *     -k
 *         Kill (stop) node mode.
 *         Note that either '-r' or '-k' can be specified.
 *         If no parameters provided - command starts in interactive mode.
 *     -id8=<node-id8>
 *         ID8 of the node to kill or restart.
 *         Note that either '-id8' or '-id' can be specified.
 *         If no parameters provided - command starts in interactive mode.
 *     -id=<node-id>
 *         ID of the node to kill or restart.
 *         Note that either '-id8' or '-id' can be specified.
 *         If no parameters provided - command starts in interactive mode.
 * }}}
 *
 * ====Examples====
 * {{{
 *     kill
 *         Starts command in interactive mode.
 *     kill "-id8=12345678 -r"
 *         Restart node with '12345678' ID8.
 *     kill "-k"
 *         Kill (stop) all nodes.
 * }}}
 */
class VisorKillCommand extends VisorConsoleCommand {
    @impl protected val name = "kill"

    /**
     * ===Command===
     * Stops or restarts a JVM indicated by the node ID.
     *
     * ===Examples===
     * <ex>kill "-id8=12345678 -r"<ex>
     * Restarts the specified node.
     *
     * <ex>kill "-k"</ex>
     * Stops all nodes.
     *
     * @param args Command arguments.
     */
    def kill(args: String) = breakable {
        if (!isConnected)
            adviseToConnect()
        else {
            val argLst = parseArgs(args)

            val iNodes = hasArgFlag("in", argLst)
            val iHosts = hasArgFlag("ih", argLst)

            if (iNodes && iHosts)
                scold("Only one of '-in' or '-ih' can be specified.").^^
            else if (iNodes)
                interactiveNodes().^^
            else if (iHosts)
                interactiveHosts().^^

            val id8 = argValue("id8", argLst)
            val id = argValue("id", argLst)
            val restart = hasArgFlag("r", argLst)
            val kill = hasArgFlag("k", argLst)

            var node: ClusterNode = null

            if (kill && restart)
                scold("Only one of '-k' or '-r' can be specified.")
            else if (!kill && !restart)
                scold("Missing '-k' or '-r' option in command: " + args)
            else if (id8.isDefined && id.isDefined)
                scold("Only one of -id8 or -id is allowed.")
            else {
                if (id8.isDefined) {
                    val ns = nodeById8(id8.get)

                    if (ns.isEmpty)
                        scold("Unknown 'id8' value: " + id8.get).^^
                    else if (ns.size != 1) {
                        scold("'id8' resolves to more than one node (use full 'id' instead) : " + args).^^
                    }
                    else
                        node = ns.head
                }
                else if (id.isDefined)
                    try {
                        node = ignite.cluster.node(java.util.UUID.fromString(id.get))

                        if (node == null)
                            scold("'id' does not match any node : " + args).^^
                    }
                    catch {
                        case e: IllegalArgumentException => scold("Invalid node 'id' in args: " + args).^^
                    }

                if (node == null && (id.isDefined || id8.isDefined))
                    scold("Node with given ID cannot be found.").^^

                try
                    // In case of the restart - check that target node supports it.
                    if (restart && node != null && node.attribute[String](ATTR_RESTART_ENABLED) != "true")
                        scold("Node doesn't support restart: " + nid8(node)).^^
                catch {
                    case e: IgniteException => scold("Failed to restart the node. " + e.getMessage).^^
                }

                val op = if (restart) "restart" else "kill"

                try
                    killOrRestart(if (node == null) ignite.cluster.nodes().map(_.id()) else Collections.singleton(node.id()), restart)
                catch {
                    case _: IgniteException => scold("Failed to " + op + " due to system error.").^^
                }
            }
        }
    }

    /**
     * ===Command===
     * Run command in interactive mode.
     *
     * ===Examples===
     * <ex>kill</ex>
     * Starts command in interactive mode.
     */
    def kill() {
        kill("-in")
    }

    /**
     * Kills or restarts nodes in provided projection.
     *
     * @param nodes Projection.
     * @param restart Restart flag.
     */
    private def killOrRestart(nodes: Iterable[UUID], restart: Boolean) {
        assert(nodes != null)

        if (nodes.isEmpty)
            warn("Topology is empty.").^^

        val op = if (restart) "restart" else "kill"

        if (nodes.size == ignite.cluster.nodes().size())
            ask("Are you sure you want to " + op + " ALL nodes? (y/n) [n]: ", "n") match {
                case "y" | "Y" =>  ask("You are about to " + op + " ALL nodes. " +
                    "Are you 100% sure? (y/n) [n]: ", "n") match {
                        case "y" | "Y" => ()
                        case "n" | "N" => break()
                        case x => nl(); warn("Invalid answer: " + x); break()
                    }
                case "n" | "N" => break()
                case x => nl(); warn("Invalid answer: " + x); break()
            }
        else if (nodes.size > 1)
            ask("Are you sure you want to " + op + " several nodes? (y/n) [n]: ", "n") match {
                case "y" | "Y" => ()
                case "n" | "N" => break()
                case x => nl(); warn("Invalid answer: " + x); break()
            }
        else
            ask("Are you sure you want to " + op + " this node? (y/n) [n]: ", "n") match {
                case "y" | "Y" => ()
                case "n" | "N" => break()
                case x => nl(); warn("Invalid answer: " + x); break()
            }

        if (restart)
            ignite.cluster.restartNodes(nodes)
        else
            ignite.cluster.stopNodes(nodes)
    }

    /**
     * Runs interactive mode of the command (choosing node).
     */
    private def interactiveNodes() {
        askForNode("Select node from:") match {
            case Some(id) => ask("Do you want to [k]ill or [r]estart? (k/r) [r]: ", "r") match {
                case "k" | "K" => killOrRestart(Seq(id), false)
                case "r" | "R" => killOrRestart(Seq(id), true)
                case x => nl(); warn("Invalid answer: " + x)
            }
            case None => ()
        }
    }

    /**
     * Runs interactive mode of the command (choosing host).
     */
    private def interactiveHosts() {
        askForHost("Select host from:") match {
            case Some(p) => ask("Do you want to [k]ill or [r]estart? (k/r) [r]: ", "r") match {
                case "k" | "K" => killOrRestart(p.nodes().map(_.id), false)
                case "r" | "R" => killOrRestart(p.nodes().map(_.id), true)
                case x => nl(); warn("Invalid answer: " + x)
            }
            case None => ()
        }
    }
}

/**
 * Companion object that does initialization of the command.
 */
object VisorKillCommand {
    /** Singleton command. */
    private val cmd = new VisorKillCommand

    // Adds command's help to visor.
    addHelp(
        name = cmd.name,
        shortInfo = "Kills or restarts node.",
        spec = List(
            cmd.name,
            s"${cmd.name} -in|-ih",
            s"${cmd.name} {-r|-k} {-id8=<node-id8>|-id=<node-id>}"
        ),
        args = List(
            "-in" -> List(
                "Run command in interactive mode with ability to",
                "choose a node to kill or restart.",
                "Note that either '-in' or '-ih' can be specified.",
                " ",
                "This mode is used by default."
            ),
            "-ih" -> List(
                "Run command in interactive mode with ability to",
                "choose a host where to kill or restart nodes.",
                "Note that either '-in' or '-ih' can be specified."
            ),
            "-r" -> List(
                "Restart node mode.",
                "Note that either '-r' or '-k' can be specified.",
                "If no parameters provided - command starts in interactive mode."
            ),
            "-k" -> List(
                "Kill (stop) node mode.",
                "Note that either '-r' or '-k' can be specified.",
                "If no parameters provided - command starts in interactive mode."
            ),
            "-id8=<node-id8>" -> List(
                "ID8 of the node to kill or restart.",
                "Note that either '-id8' or '-id' can be specified and " +
                    "you can also use '@n0' ... '@nn' variables as shortcut to <node-id8>.",
                "If no parameters provided - command starts in interactive mode."
            ),
            "-id=<node-id>" -> List(
                "ID of the node to kill or restart.",
                "Note that either '-id8' or '-id' can be specified.",
                "If no parameters provided - command starts in interactive mode."
            )
        ),
        examples = List(
            cmd.name ->
                "Starts command in interactive mode.",
            s"${cmd.name} -id8=12345678 -r" ->
                "Restart node with id8.",
            s"${cmd.name} -id8=@n0 -r" ->
                "Restart specified node with id8 taken from 'n0' memory variable.",
            s"${cmd.name} -k" ->
                "Kill (stop) all nodes."
        ),
        emptyArgs = cmd.kill,
        withArgs = cmd.kill
    )

    /**
     * Singleton.
     */
    def apply() = cmd

    /**
     * Implicit converter from visor to commands "pimp".
     *
     * @param vs Visor tagging trait.
     */
    implicit def fromKill2Visor(vs: VisorTag): VisorKillCommand = cmd
}


If this were Amazon.com or Netflix, you'd see "People who like this also like Banh Mi Che Cali." This is true. If you are a Banh Mi Che Cali devotee like I am, you'll also like Banh Mi Cho Cu. If Banh Mi Che Cali was Pulp Fiction, I'd have to say Banh Mi Cho Cu is Reservoir Dogs, spare, lean and mean--the OG of banh mi. I can quote Pulp Fiction and have tried all of Banh Mi Che Cali's sandwiches, but once in a while I need to go back to pay my respects.
The bakery, as with most things noteworthy in Little Saigon, is crammed between a seedy liquor store and a laundromat. Every inch of counter space looks as if a cornucopia of foodstuffs exploded and what you see is the shrapnel. There are Vietnamese food-to-go products of every imaginable permutation--rice and meat wrapped in cellophane, banh cuon rice-noodle sheets wound around meat, sticky rice this and that--all stacked on top of each other in a chaotic tangle of colors and textures. On the side next to the register, cha gio (egg rolls) and pate chaud (Vietnamese flaky meat pies) heat inside hot boxes.
But raison d'être, of course, is the banh mi ($2.50 each; or buy two, get the third free). The dac biet, or house special, called to me: a combo of meats (mostly pork) stuffed inside a crusty baguette. Though it is like Banh Mi Che Cali's sandwich in many ways, the banh mi scholar will detect a few differences. The cucumbers are cut crosswise rather than lengthwise. The jalapenos and the usual carrot and daikon pickles are applied with a lighter touch. Also, no measurable amount of mayo is used.
What you taste is predominately the bread and the meat. You chew the gelatin jiggle of the pork fat from the slice of roast pig. You perk up at the salty funk of liver pâté. And you relish the smoothness of the white Vietnamese ham called cha lua. These are layers of pork-on-pork action, hugged by the pillow of what could be one of the best baguettes in Little Saigon--a bread with the lightness of helium, a crusty crumb that shed itself all over my shirt, and a refinement that plays against the rustic, uncensored personality of the cold cuts.
If you're a banh mi lover, I quote Vincent Vega when he said, "Yeah baby, you'd dig it the most!"
This looks tasty. I am bothered that it doesn't have much mayo in it because I actually quite like that part of the sandwich. Are you saying that this bread is as good as Banh Mi Che Cali or better? Because if better, than I really need to head on over there. Not sure how you came up with the idea to put Pulp Fiction and Banh Mi in the same post but you made it work.
Used to stop by this place all the time after church. The pastries are great here too, and my friends used to love the boba.
Nice write up! Keep it up.
I don't know why so many people are down on the Lee's bread. I actually prefer that style. Its the amount of filling I have a problem with.
Will have to try this place you wrote about.
I dislike the bread at Lee's. Cuts my cheek up royal. Banh Mi Che Cali's is kind of softer. Is this one somewhere in between?
I haven't done a head-to-head comparison (though I should), but Cho Cu's bread is definitely crustier on the outside than BMCC. The evidence was all over my shirt! I'm sure I like this bread over BMCC's ...though, I agree with Madison, I love that ultra eggy mayo BMCC uses.
Hey Elmo - When I was asking our friend "Beach" about finding bread that pretty close to what we had in VN, this is where he took me. It's still a bit more substantial, and not as airy.....but it was pretty close!
If it pleases the Don of Little Saigon, then it's good enough for me!


1. In a flat bottomed pan, fry off the pancetta in a little of the olive oil until golden and crisp, remove and set to one side.
2. Lightly toast the pine nuts in the pan, remove and save for later.
3. Crush the garlic and finely chop the thyme, then add to the pan.
4. Add the cabbage, pancetta and half of the grated parmesan to the pan, mix and put the lid on.
5. Cook for approximately 10 minutes, shaking every now and then, until tender. Whilst you do this, cook the farfalle in salted boiling water until al dente and then drain.
6. Season the cabbage with some extra-virgin olive oil and add a little freshly-ground black pepper to taste.
7. Add the drained farfelle into the cabbage.
8. At the last minute, mix in the diced mozzarella and pine nuts.
Sprinkle the rest of the parmesan over your pasta and serve immediately.


Understanding some of the most common heart problems in dogs is important to detect any warning signs before a condition becomes worse. Symptoms including a long lasting cough, changes in behaviour, loss of appetite and breathlessness are just some of the signs to look out for concerning heart disease in your pet canine.
Dealing with congestive heart failure using enzymes alongside medication is very important. Although a diuretic medication will remove the fluid, which causes the issues regarding congestive heart failure, enzymes have been proven to actually reverse the effects. Dr. Wilfrid Shute and Dr. Evan Shute studied and verified this during their 40-year study which commenced in the 1940's. These brothers, who were actually human doctors, proved that it is possible to prevent heart problems in dogs and humans through their diet; this has been tested and proven to be correct time and time again by modern veterinarians across the globe.
Diagnosing and treating arrhythmia, otherwise known as an irregular heartbeat, in dogs needs to be done fast. The aforementioned symptoms of heart disease will be your first indicators, but it is important not to brush them off as generic signs of old age as happens all too often.
Understanding the effects of an aortic thromboembolism, or blood clot in the heart, in your dog is vital to their recovery. An aortic thromboembolism may first be detected when you notice that you dog is vomiting, paralyzed, struggling to breathe, anxious, barking randomly or suffering from hypothermia. Supplementing with a natural source Omega 3 for dogs, like Flax Lecithin, can play a vital role in their recovery. This is because it treats essential fatty acid imbalances and deficiencies, which cause these nasty symptoms.


You're going to hear most about Ben Thanh Market. But I actually found Binh Tay Market to have better prices, be a more local experience, and I overall enjoyed visiting it more than Ben Thanh. Binh Tay Market is one of the major official markets, located in the Cholon area of Ho Chi Minh City, what is Chinatown.
Located in the Chinatown area (District 5) of Ho Chi Minh City and built back in the 19th century, Thien Hau Temple is dedicated to Thien Hau, the Lady of the Sea (source).
In the past you might have heard of the Gia Long Palace or the Revolutionary Museum, but now, the same place is officially known as the Museum of Ho Chi Minh City or HCMC Museum.
Standing taller than any other building in Ho Chi Minh City, and towering to the sky, is a skyscraper that's made to look like a lotus bulb, known as Bitexco Financial Tower.
Now a museum, but still used for official government meetings and events, the Independence Palace was the former home of the president of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
Probably not quite as grand as the Notre Dame de Paris, but nevertheless an important cathedral and landmark in Ho Chi Minh City, the Notre Dame Cathedral marks the center of the French colonial heritage in Saigon.
Right across the street from the Saigon's Cathedral of Notre Dame, within the same city square, is yet another renowned landmark, the Central Post Office, that began construction back in 1886.
The War Remnants Museum in Saigon is definitely not a fun attraction to visit.
But it is a place to remember the atrocious and horrible effects that come as a result of war.
Considered to be one of the best representations of French colonial architecture in Saigon, the Opera House theater was built in 1897, and has been beautifully preserved.


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The Haverstraw Police Department has arrested Luis Rivera, 57, of West Haverstraw for alleged sexual abuse of a child. On Friday, June 2 the cops announced Rivera was charged with sexual abuse in the first degree and endangering the welfare of a child.
Anyone who knows of other potential victims of the alleged abuser, can contact Haverstraw Police Department at 845-354-1500 or TIPS@HAVERSTRAWPOLICE.ORG. Tips remain anonymous.
Rivera was not held on bail following the arrest. Police said he has no known criminal record of sexual abuse.


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Are they friends, or are they ( I know you are gonna hate me but) Gay? Just asking, DON'T HATE ME!!!!
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text:
TTAND & TPI among top 10 agencies worldwide at Sandals STAR Awards
Posted by Travelweek Group
TURKS & CAICOS — Sandals Resorts is celebrating the best of the best with its top travel agents, travel agencies and suppliers at the 18th annual STAR Awards at Beaches Turks & Caicos.
Plenty of Canadian agents took home awards including Sandy Willett from Vision Travel in Waterloo, ON who was honoured with the Sandals CEO Award of Excellence.
Canada's 'Best of the Best' at the 2019 Sandals STAR Awards at Beaches Turks & Caicos
The top 10 travel agencies worldwide included host agencies TPI and The Travel Agent Next Door.
And the 'Best of the Best' for Canada included The Travel Agent Next Door; TPI; Kim Hartlen Travel/TPI in Nova Scotia; Travel Only; Vision Travel Solutions; CWT/Stewart Travel in Peterborough, ON; Quebec's One Love Honeymoons/CME Travel, LatitudesPlus Smart Travel in Whitby, ON.
While the STAR event is all about celebrating travel agents, it's also an opportunity to reflect on the legacy, and forward momentum, of Sandals Resorts and Beaches Resorts.
"'World's Best' is not a tagline, it's a signifier of what to expect, and more importantly it's a promise on what Sandals and Beaches Resorts will deliver – exceeding your and your clients' expectations and earning our stars every day," said Maureen Barnes-Smith, Director of Sales & Marketing, Unique Vacations Canada Inc., affiliate of the worldwide representative of Sandals Resorts and Beaches Resorts.
More news: TravelBrands' 2020 Match Game kicks off with plenty of prizes
"Over the past 38 years we have seen the evolution of travel and the transformation of the Sandals brand as your customers' needs and desires have changed. We have seen the introduction of Beaches and the increasing diversity of our product offerings as we have anticipated and reacted to industry trends."
The company has stayed nimble as it evolves with the times, but "what has never changed for us is the vision that started this company, of finding the best beaches and real estate on which to create world class luxury resorts," said Barnes-Smith.
For Sandals Resorts' "passion driver and perfection seeker", Chairman and Founder Gordon 'Butch' Stewart, every beach told a story, said Barnes-Smith, "one he wanted to share with customers while delivering more than they ever expected."
That led to Sandals Resorts' trajectory as an innovator, with industry firsts including everything from hair dryers and robes in the room, to à la carte restaurants, and more recently, to over the water bungalows and villas, over the water serenity wedding chapels and over the water bars.
More news: Goway's 2020-21 Idyllic Islands brochure hot off the press
The story of Sandals "has been an unbelievable journey, from the humblest beginnings of 99 bedrooms in 1981 to now being the Caribbean's only all-inclusive superbrand and World's Leading All-Inclusive Resorts for 24 years," said Barnes-Smith.
She added: "We continue to be the single largest private employer in the Caribbean, supporting local industries in all the islands where we operate and providing sustainable linkages throughout all levels of industry in these islands.
"We continue to set the trends, and to be the benchmark that competitors follow, seizing opportunities where others see obstacles."
Tags: Sandals, STAR Awards, TPI, TTAND, Turks & Caicos
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Interview: Air Canada's EVP Operations Craig Landry talks about the new A220, and agents
All eyes were on the newest member of Air Canada's fleet, the Airbus A220-300, at the aircraft's official debut at Air Canada's headquarters.
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text:
Braun Khan
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Braun Khan was born on January 18th, 1980 and has been playing bass for over 15 years. He is from Mount Pleasant Michigan and began playing the acoustic guitar and then the electric bass in high school. He quickly developed a love for music and began playing quite extensively in church groups and local bands. His experiences ranged from pop/rock to gospel to funk. A few years after taking up the electric bass his interests expanded to jazz and the upright bass. He began... (more)
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Braun Khan has been playing bass for 15+ years. He studied classical and jazz bass studies at Central Michigan University, where he was also hired to teach jazz theory and oversee community outreach. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Arts in Jazz Studies at University of Northern Colorado as well as being very active in the Northern Colorado music scene. Braun Khan was born on January 18th, 1980 and has been playing bass for over 15 years. He is from Mount Pleasant Michigan and began playing the acoustic guitar and then the electric bass in high school. He quickly developed a love for music and began playing quite extensively in church groups and local bands. His experiences ranged from pop/rock to gospel to funk. A few years after taking up the electric bass his interests expanded to jazz and the upright bass. He began studying classical and jazz bass performance at Central Michigan University, along with maintaining a busy schedule playing electric bass with local and regional musicians. He was also serving full-time as a Music Director at a non-denominational church. After completing a Master of Music degree in double bass performance at Central Michigan University he was hired by the university to teach classes in jazz theory and to oversee their community outreach program. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Arts in Jazz Studies at the University of Northern Colorado and is a very active part of the Northern Colorado music scene, gigging frequently in jazz and funk/rock groups as well as with classical ensembles. When not busy with music he enjoys spending time with his wife and five children.
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Excellent source about the Holland family can be found here.
Additional source: Handbook of Texas Online. It says "HOLLAND, TAPLEY. Tapley Holland, Alamo defender, one of six children of Margaret (Buck) and Francis Holland, was born in Ohio in 1810. His father had migrated from Canada to Louisiana and moved to Texas in 1822 as one of Stephen F. Austin's Old Three Hundred settlers. Tapley Holland, a resident of Grimes County, took part in the siege of Bexar. Later he served in the Alamo garrison as a member of Capt. William R. Carey's artillery company. Holland died in the battle of the Alamo on March 6, 1836. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Daughters of the American Revolution, The Alamo Heroes and Their Revolutionary Ancestors (San Antonio, 1976 Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Muster Rolls of the Texas Revolution (Austin, 1986 Bill Groneman, Alamo Defenders (Austin: Eakin, 1990)."


Bernie Ecclestone has given the organisers of the US Grand Prix in Austin one week to agree to a deal to host the race in 2012.
Ecclestone had said November 30 was the deadline for the Circuit of the Americas to sign the contract, but that has now extended it.
"The deadline hasn't been met, so we are still trying to make it happen," Ecclestone told the Associated Press on Wednesday. "They need to get some money and a pen … as soon as possible. They know full well. Deadlines are terrible things because people always go to the end of the deadline. But if it isn't all signed before the World Motor Sport Council meeting, it can't happen."
The next World Motor Sport Council meeting will take place on December 7 and the signing off of the 2012 calendar is on the agenda. The Circuit of the Americas has said it has the money to the host the race, but there is a sticking point over the terms of the contract. Ecclestone, who has sent issued a new contract for the circuit to sign, said it would be a shame if the race did not go ahead.
"They are struggling to get the financial side sorted out -- that's the problem," he added. "They are trying to do it. It would be a loss to everyone (if it didn't happen). They would like the race to take place … I'd rather see the race happen than not."


"Mr. Asay, Canonical COO, blogs up "Life's too short for partisanship".
"If Microsoft warms up to open source, why not share some plaudits? And even when it gets things wrong, surely it's better to politely critique rather than spew invectives?
"In the real world, appeasement very rarely works – and even rarer still for profit-based entities to respond to non-profit based approaches. Hostile entities very rarely respond to "polite critiques". Do you know what Microsoft responds to? Customer demand and decreasing market share. I shouldn't have to be explaining this to a COO."


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Yacine Abdessadki (Nice, 1 de janeiro de 1981) é um futebolista franco-marroquino que atua como meio-campo. Atualmente, joga pelo SC Freiburg.

Ele é naturalizado marroquino, já jogou 16 partidas pela Seleção Marroquina de Futebol. Seus outros clubes foram Strasbourg, Grenoble e Toulouse

Futebolistas de Marrocos
Naturais de Nice

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


John Claus Voss (1858-1922) purchased a traditional First Nation canoe, modified its hull, added three masts and named it "Tilikum", meaning "friend" in Chinook jargon.
In 1901 he set off from Victoria, British Columbia with journalist Norman Luxton to sail around the world. Luxton got off in Fiji, having crossed the Pacific and Voss continued the journey with a succession of mates, visiting Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Brazil and finally arriving at Margate, England in 1904.
Here, he and Tilikum were feted as celebrities... the boat being exhibited at Earls Court in 1905 and Voss being nominated for election as a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. In time new owners installed an engine and used the vessel to cruise the east coast until it was finally abandoned on Canvey Island.
There in 1929 she was found in a sorry state by a naval officer, who drew this to the attention of the authorities in British Columbia, who in turn arranged for its return to Victoria. Once there Tilikum was subject to renovation and was displayed in several locations until it found a permanent resting place at the Maritime Museum of B.C.
The book 'The Venturesome Voyages of Captain Voss' by John Claus Voss (1858-1922), photographs by Powell, H. Price first published in 1913 can be read here.
This gallery was added by Mark Thres on 07/06/2011.
WoW! I had heard this story but didn't know a picture existed - I think it was by the sea wall next to Mitchells Avenue in Smallgains creek?
Brilliant! Got to join the 'WoW' club for this one. It's the first time I've heard of this story and even more interesting we stayed with friends in Victoria B.C. obviously in ignorance of Canvey's link with that beautiful city. Should have visited the Maritime Museum of B.C. Thanks Mark.


Having moved from Rogers Park—a grimy neighborhood on the far North Side of Chicago—Skokie seemed almost too good to be true. I no longer would have to play in the dirt courtyard of our crowded apartment building or among the trash heaps in the alleyways.
If Skokie was an escape from urban decay for a kid from Chicago, it was something close to paradise for my parents and an estimated 8,000 Holocaust survivors like them who poured into the Chicago suburb in the 1950s, '60s and '70s. Though I didn't know it then, or for decades to come, my mother, Sonia, had spent much of her childhood and adolescence hiding from Nazis in the forests of Poland. At age 16 in 1947, she had arrived in Chicago, where she would meet and marry my father, Robert—himself a survivor of concentration camps and death marches.
In this little town, barely 10 miles square, on Chicago's northern border, survivors could find blintzes and bialys at innumerable Jewish delis, buy kosher meats at butcher shops where everyone spoke Yiddish and stroll on High Holy Days to services at storefront shuls without fear of harassment. Here, they built an American shtetl, complete with Hebrew schools, Israeli bakeries, Old World tailor shops and quaint Judaica stores. "It was a dream of a place," recalls survivor Regina Samelson, who still lives in Skokie.
Why did the survivors flock to Skokie? For starters, it was close to Chicago, so they could ride the bus or bike to jobs in the city.
But most wouldn't have known about Skokie—Potawatomi for swamp—in the first place if hadn't been for savvy—and often Jewish—real-estate developers and builders who courted post-World War II Jews yearning to move out of the city and up to suburbia.
And so they did, in an exodus from tough neighborhoods in the South, West and North Sides of Chicago. They migrated to a village that, by 1975, was 57 percent Jewish, according to estimates by the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago. Still, even in this safe haven populated with middle-class and blue-collar workers like themselves, the survivors lived in a world apart, socializing mostly with each other and going out of their way to minimize attention to themselves.
So sad that all of us must still be subjected to the sight of Nazi flags and chants and symbols!
In 1956 when my family moved to Skokie it was like we were millionaires from living in an atic apartment in Evanston to a great clean house of our own in Skokie was a wonderful feeling and having the opportunity to go to school with people from different cultures was an honor.
A big Thank You to all of my Jewish friends that I grew up with for making me the person I am today. I do miss those Delors and the challiah bread.
I remember when the Natzis came to Skokie and poured red paint on the holocaust monument that was between city hall and the library it put our Catholic mayor in the hospital with a heart attach. That hatred effects all of us .
I grew up in Skokie and I'm Catholic. To this day I still embrace and love many of my Jewish friends. In fact my brother in law is Jewish. Skokie was a great place to grow up. I'm grateful! Hate will never win we must fight back with love.


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David Catt
>Space Safety Coordination: A Norm for All Nations
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Space Safety Coordination: A Norm for All Nations
(Small Wars Journal)
Three tiny satellites photographed by an Expedition 33 crew member on the International Space Station, October 4, 2012
by Bruce McClintock
Imagine this: As you drive down the highway at the speed limit in the right lane, another car races past you on the left, then veers into your lane without warning. The other car then slows down until it is just feet in front of you, forcing you to make a quick decision to slow down, change lanes, or even swerve off the road to the right to avoid a collision. Now imagine the same scenario involving two satellites orbiting 22,000 miles above the earth and traveling at 6,800 miles per hour.
That exact space scenario occurred in 2015 when a Russian satellite maneuvered close to a commercial satellite and then failed to communicate its intentions while remaining in place for five months.
As space becomes more congested with satellites of all sizes and types, the need for every nation to actively participate in the space safety coordination system grows.
In 2009, the United States created a satellite information-sharing program to provide no-cost basic, emergency, and advanced position data and services to participants from any nation. The system has evolved to include notification procedures for close approaches and means for exchanging information through a common website. Most spacefaring countries participate in the data-sharing and communication program. But a few countries, notably Russia and China, do not participate in the program or follows its guidelines, which creates greater potential for collisions between satellites and increases the likelihood of space debris if satellites break apart. Space debris can linger in orbit for many years, creating even more hazards for other satellites since the debris is uncontrolled and often too small to track.
In the case of the Russian satellite in 2015, multiple attempts were made to communicate with the Russian agencies operating it, yet the Russians did not respond. The private company, Intelsat, that owned the commercial satellite formally complained to the Russian Federal Space Agency about the "potentially dangerous behavior" of the satellite. At the time, the current safety coordination system was already in place to prevent and deal with such events.
All nations, including Russia, are expected to comply with the established safety process to help prevent accidents and reinforce existing safety norms. The process begins with an exchange of contact information through the common website, space-track.org, where position and other information on known satellite activity is shared. The United States provides notifications to participants about anticipated satellite "conjunctions" so that satellite owners and operators can collaborate on satellite maneuvers to avoid collisions.
Of course, the Russians are not the only nation capable of maneuvering satellites close to one another. The United States, China, and Russia have a history of developing satellites that are capable of rendezvous operations. The same maneuvers that allow astronauts and supplies to reach the space station are now used to get much smaller unmanned satellites to rendezvous. Coordinated rendezvous maneuvers are challenging—since 2005, at least three collisions have occurred between fully coordinated maneuvering satellites. Collisions are even more likely when one satellite maneuvers in close proximity to another and there is no communication between the satellite operators.
The Russians have not responded to any attempt to communicate with them via this system since 2011. The 2015 satellite incident is just one of several close maneuvers that was not coordinated with a nearby satellite. Several nations, including the United States, openly use satellites for on-orbit inspections—the use of separate satellites to observe other satellites from a safe distance. Speculation that Russia may be creating kamikaze satellites, designed to slam into a target satellite rather than just inspect it from afar, makes the situation far more concerning.
Recent U.S. government reports confirm that both Russia and China are developing satellites designed to collide with targets rather than just inspect them. Russian and Chinese development of on-orbit satellite attack systems highlight the need for increased transparency between nations, increased commitment and compliance with the space-awareness safety program, and the development of international rules for holding non-compliant actors, like Russia, accountable.
The United States set the example for increased transparency when it created the space safety coordination system in 2009. Russia and other spacefaring nations could demonstrate their commitment to transparency and safety by joining the network of responsible space nations. The first step for those new to the network would be to provide contact information to the space safety program and respond when notified of expected close approaches.
If Russia or any other nation fails to respond to a notification, then the international community might do well to consider developing rules with consequences for failure to abide by the emerging international norms in space.
Bruce McClintock is an adjunct policy analyst at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation and a former U.S. Defense attaché in Moscow.
This commentary originally appeared on Small Wars Journal on April 16, 2019. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis.
Bruce McClintock
@BHMcClintock
Lead, Space Enterprise Initiative; Policy Analyst
Commercial Satellites
International Diplomacy
Military Satellites
Satellite Anomalies: Benefits of a Centralized Anomaly Database and Methods for Securely Sharing Information Among Satellite Operators
David A. Galvan, Brett Hemenway, et al.
Debris Poses Increased Threat to Exploration
William Welser IV, Dave Baiocchi
Our Reliance on Space Tech Means We Should Prepare for the Worst
James Black


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← Concho Stage Station
Manuel T. "Lone Wolf" Gonzaullas, Texas Ranger →
Light Crust Doughboys
The Light Crust Doughboys are an American western swing band from the Lone Star State created in 1931 to promote Light Crust Flour and other products of Burrus Mill and Elevator Company in Saginaw, Texas, a suburb of Ft. Worth. The original group was formed by the company president, W. Lee O'Daniel and performed until about 1942. During this period they began a radio broadcast on KFJZ in Ft. Worth and the show would open with the announcer saying "The Light Crust Doughboys are on the air!" After the first couple of weeks, O'Daniel wanted to cancel the show, but its early popularity encouraged him to continue the broadcast and it came a popular stable at noon each weekday. This is a YouTube link to a 1934 recording of the group's theme song.
Band members were initially paid $7.50 per week and also were required at first to work at the company mill. This only continued for a while before O'Daniel allowed them to practice during the day instead of working at the mill. Original band members included Bob Wills, Herman Arnspiger and Milton Brown who came to the group from their own band, the Wills Fiddle Band. Other notable players over the years included Tommy Duncan, Kenneth Pitts, Clifford Gross, Dick Reinhart, Smokey Montgomery, Ramon DeArman, Knocky Parker and Muryel Campbell. At its peak, the radio broadcast played over 170 radio stations in the Southwest.
Personnel changed many times over the years. Wills, Duncan and Brown left for their own musical pursuits though the band continued with the signature sound that Wills had established. In 1935, O'Daniel himself would leave the company to start his own mill. He also founded his own promotional group called Pat O'Daniel and His Hillbilly Boys. The notoriety from these activities was a springboard to O'Daniel's political ambitions and he was elected governor of Texas in 1938. Through all the changes, the Light Crust Doughboys group performed all around Texas until the advent of World War II during which time they disbanded. Burrus tried to reform the band and radio show in 1946 but never were able to achieve the following they once enjoyed.
After the war, the group was resurrected by Smokey Montgomery and performed regularly for many years. Then in 1983, long time musician and producer Art Greenhaw of Mesquite, Texas booked the group to play at his Mesquite Folk Festival. Greenhaw became interested in the group and joined it as a bass player in 1993. Art added horns to the ensemble and other members included Jerry Elliott, Bill Simmons, John Walden, Jim Baker and Dale Cook. In 1995 were named by the Texas Legislature to be the Official Music Ambassadors of the Lone Star State. The group continues to record and perform today and has won many honors and awards. They won a Grammy for their CD "We Called Him Mr. Gospel Music: The James Blackwood Tribute Album." They contributed greatly to the opening of the Light Crust Doughboys Hall of Fame and Museum in Quitman, Texas in 2005. They were inducted into the Texas Radio Hall of Fame in 2006. After more than 80 years, the band is still going strong. Click on this YouTube link to hear the band's lively rendition of "The Orange Blossom Special."
The band in its current configuration will be appearing five times each day on the Dr. Pepper Stage of the Texas State Fair in Dallas from October 11-October 18, 2015. Also, Hall of State will have an exhibit featuring the Light Crust Doughboys during the Fair run. First time public display for many artifacts including their Grammy Award, 8 Tiffany Grammy Nominee Medallions, instruments, wardrobe, as well as other awards and trophies.
Other contact links for the Light Crust Doughboys:
Posted by Texoso on August 27, 2015 in entertainers
Tags: history, texas
One response to "Light Crust Doughboys"
An interesting AND entertaining piece of history!


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Accountability for guns and comments
December 19, 2019 commongunsenseaccountability for guns, easy access to guns, Extreme Risk Protection Orders, incendiary rhetoric, kids and guns, lost and stolen guns, private security companies, safe storage, school shootings, Trump impeachment, Trump rhetoric
Accountability on Black Chalkboard. Black Chalkboard with Accountability Concept. 3d Rendering.
Of course we know by now that President Trump has been impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives. Abuse of power and obstruction of Congress are the impeachment articles. Can we talk about abuse of responsibility and language in our current hyperbolic and partisan atmosphere?
Whatever you think about impeachment at the least the comments should be measured since the public and social media get to hear what you have to say with the speed of light. Such is the case with comparisons to Jesus and the bombing of Pearl Harbor during last night's vote.
And so, when a Colorado radio talk show host said that he wished for a school shooting in the midst of the impeachment vote, his comments were taken seriously:
Denver radio host Chuck Bonniwell began a segment of his afternoon radio show Tuesday by lamenting the "never-ending impeachment of Donald Trump," and then saying, "You know, you wish for a nice school shooting to interrupt the monopoly."
Chuck tried to walk it back but he failed miserably showing his total lack of empathy and common sense.:
Bonniwell hasn't apologized on air yet, but immediately after Hayden's response to his comment, he told his audience that he meant shootings in "which no one would be hurt."
You can't make this stuff up.
In this era of a President and a party that seems to think anything goes and accountability for their insane and cruel remarks doesn't happen quickly enough, it was refreshing to find out that Chuck's show was canceled.
No Chuck, you can't joke about school shootings. It's not done in a polite and democratic society. But the bully in Chief has made remarks like this one "normal". They are not normal. It's been said that Trump could shoot someone on 5th Avenue ( NYC) and get away with it. God help us if that is actually true.
The lack of accountability for words and actions is more than concerning. It's dangerous. Going forward in this divided country where incendiary language could result in a tragedy, everyone needs to be accountable for what they say and do. Our democracy depends on it.
School shootings have made the lives of our kids dangerous. Shootings at home has made the lives of our kids dangerous. Gun suicides have made the lives of our teens dangerous. Easy access to guns has made our country dangerous. There are real consequences for not being accountable.
And so let's talk about not being accountable with guns. I want to highlight this awful story about a father who left a loaded gun around for one of his children to find. The child shot his sister dead. And the father? He hid in the basement with his AR-15 at the ready:
Pataskala police had received 60 phone calls to that address involving guns and knives since 2009, according to the bond recommendation.
What about an Extreme Risk Protection Order law Ohio?
And lastly, I want to highlight a story, just released, about a private security company that has managed to "lose" over 600 guns in possession of their security agents. What kind of accountability is this? Well, here is what happened with some of the guns that were "lost and/or stolen":
The largest private security company in the world can't keep track of its guns.
And the consequences are clear: One of their missing guns was held to a woman's head as a man threatened to rape her. Another was used to pistol-whip a pizza delivery driver. A third ended the lives of two men playing video games.
Before they were used to hurt or kill people, each of these guns was assigned to a security guard whose job was to protect the public. Then they were stolen from G4S, a company that brings in billions of dollars with promises of "securing your world."
Surely this company realizes that guns are dangerous weapons designed to kill people and that everyone who carries one or uses one in their employ must be accountable for their weapon?
And surely this company realizes that safe storage of guns saves lives and is crucial for responsible gun owners.
From the article about the company's agreement about accountability:
Under a firearms license with the federal government, G4S is supposed to make sure its weapons are secure and accounted for at all times, like gun shops do. But the company saves time and does more business by shifting much of that responsibility to individual guards, trusting them to safely store the weapons at home.
Too often, they don't.
No. They always have to be accountable for their weapons.
In these times of anything goes, we all have to accountable for our actions and our words. Words matter. Our own President uses incendiary and dangerous language in his campaign rallies. Last night was no exception. This is not who we are. Chuck's language was not OK. The consequence was quick. The father left a gun out for a child. The consequence was deadly. A large security firm has "lost" guns they promised they would not because they wanted to save time and money. The consequence was deadly.
Background checks and gingerbread houses
December 18, 2019 commongunsenseALICE training, Brady background checks, Extreme Risk Protection Orders, kids and guns, mass shootings, Minnesota gun laws, PTSD and shootings, safe storage, school lockdowns, school shootings
Yesterday I stopped to pick up my best friend at her house. Her son-in-law and granddaughter were outside of her door picking up her background check form that would be submitted to her granddaughter's teacher so that she could enter the school building to help with her granddaughter's 3rd grade class make gingerbread houses.
Her granddaughter was quite clear that this was required because of the near school shooting that happened last spring in Duluth. In a matter of fact voice she stated that her school had to go on a "soft" lock-down because someone with a gun was in the nearby high school. All Duluth schools went on lock-down that day. No one connected with the schools has forgotten what happened that day. Duluth could have been in the news for a mass shooting of innocent school children but because law enforcement acted quickly and relative reported the man to law enforcement the man was arrested before he could do any serious harm.
The harm done still lives inside of students and teachers. As I wrote in my last post, one of the students who huddled with friends in the orchestra room fearing she was going to die, has not forgotten. PTSD is real. Kids go to school wondering if there will be a shooting that day. It is no at the top of their minds most likely but it lurks under the surface.
And companies are profiting from this fear by training educators and children to participate in lock-down drills that make them responsible for stopping a shooter, not the elected leaders who could actually do something about it. I will write more about this later.
And by do something, I mean pass the universal background check bill passed by the U.S. House last February. Minnesota Senators could pass the background check sitting idle on their desks as well after the House passed the bill last spring. But common sense is not happening when it should given the gun violence epidemic.
Does it make any sense, for example, that a man who has served time for various felony offenses, can walk into a Duluth bar and threaten people with a gun?:
At the time of the incident, Curry was on supervised release for a federal conviction for conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. He also has convictions in Minnesota for attempted second-degree burglary, aiding and abetting second-degree assault and escape from custody.
Could or should this man have passed a background check at a federally licensed firearms dealers? No. Could he get a gun anyway? Yes. And that is our problem and the foolishness and danger of not requiring background checks on all gun sales but getting them on volunteers in our schools.
The thing is, the man who was caught at a high school in Duluth last year passed a first background check so he could coach kids with disabilities. But a more thorough check may have found him to be someone who should not be in schools working with kids if not more. An Extreme Risk Protection Order could have prevented him from having guns given that he was reported by a family member for comments he had made. In addition, he appeared to have mental health difficulties that should have prevented him from having a gun.
Miller, the defense attorney, said his client has mental health diagnoses and believes that he was not thinking clearly at the time he made the statements. He added that he does not believe the weapons were actually capable of fully automatic fire, indicating a probable cause challenge would likely be made to that charge.
"…fully automatic fire…" What are we thinking? Why should any gun or any gun kit that could make a gun capable of automatic fire be available to anyone?
We know requiring background checks on all gun sales will not save every life. But not to require them is an abrogation of our responsibility of a polite and democratic society. We all have a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Happiness is being able to help your granddaughter make a gingerbread house in her school classroom without fear of being shot.
Rather than do the right thing and do whatever is necessary to make guns harder to access for those who should not have them,we engage companies to train our children to fight off school shooters.
The Trace has published this article about ALICE training:
Drills can also be traumatic for the children involved, and schools considering training options have the difficult task of weighing the need for protection from intruders against the risk of doing further harm. "There is no evidence that lockdown drills with kids learning to barricade or defend themselves enhances security," said Dr. Nancy Rappaport, an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. And the drills "may have unintended consequences of creating terror for students."
There are no national standards or specific licensing requirements dictating who can or can't start an active shooter training company, he said, which is part of the problem. "People are claiming to be subject matter experts because they feel they are, or have written a book," he said.
Czyz said he is so convinced that teachers are the ones who need to be prepared that he doesn't train children in active shooter drills, only in preventative measures and situational awareness. He doesn't want to risk training a potential shooter, and was spooked by reports that the Parkland shooter may have used his knowledge of the school's drill procedure to guide his attack. (The gunman reportedly set off the fire alarm before his rampage, which may have complicated the school's lockdown.)
This is all about the kids. If we can't protect them from being shot, who are we? All kids should be able to go about their business of being students and not worry about being shot. The fact that we have to have lock-down drills using techniques from companies like ALICE is a statement about us. New information about these kinds of trainings should make us wonder what we are doing to our kids.
I know my friend had a great time with her granddaughter and I assume all were safe. And let's hope that everyone stays safe for the remainder of the school year of 2019.
7 years after Sandy Hook
December 14, 2019 commongunsenseDomestic Abuse Intervention Programs, domestic abusers and guns, Duluth vigil, gun owner support for gun laws, gun suicides, gun violence and GLBTQ+ communities, gun violence and Native Americans, lighting candles for victims, mass shootings, Military gun suicides, minorities and guns, NAACP support for gun safety reform, Northland Brady/Protect Minnesota chapter, PTSD and shootings, Sandy Hook shooting, school shootings, victims of shootings, Vigils for gun violence victims
Again, we are at that date again. We are remembering the 26 innocent victims of that awful day in 2012.
My Northland Brady/Protect Minnesota chapter held a vigil yesterday to honor those 26 lives and to highlight the effect gun violence has on all of us. Gun violence takes the form of suicides, homicides, mass shootings and "accidental shootings" along with actions taken by law enforcement. We have had so many mass shootings that we are all suffering from PTSD.
The headline of the hard copy of the Duluth News Tribune is this: "We are children, dying before we live." That was a quote from a Duluth student who experienced a real lockdown last April of all Duluth schools when a man threatened to shoot up a school and was found in one of the local high schools. The student noted that it's been 8 months and 8 days since her lease on life was extended because she thought she was going to die that day:
Karin Berdahl, now a student at Drake University in Iowa, noted that it had been eight months and eight days since she was in the orchestra room at Duluth East High School "cradling myself and my friend, shaking with terror" after an alert was given about a man with a gun in the school.
She was born two years after the Columbine High School shooting in Littleton, Colo., Berdahl said, and was 11 when the Sandy Hook shooting took place.
"I have never lived in a time where gun violence isn't prevalent," she said. "I have never not lived with that fear. Restrictions can be set in place. Laws can be passed. I was lucky that day; many are not. We are children, dying before we live."
And this, dear readers is the American tragedy of gun violence. The Executive Director of Domestic Abuse Intervention Programs spoke about the trainings he does in Australia for the coordinated community response to domestic abuse known as the Duluth Model. In Australia, there is domestic abuse as there is everywhere in the world. But women are not being killed by their abusers in regular incidents as we hear and read about every day in our own country.
The Chief of Police spoke about Extreme Risk Protection Orders and why they would save lives:
This year, Tusken said, he consulted with St. Louis County Sheriff Ross Litman when it became known to police that a man with a permit to carry was mentally unstable. Without a red flag law in place, there was nothing police could do to protect the man from himself or o
A parent spoke and teared up about having to think about her sons being victims of a school shooting and she chose not to think about every day as she sne them off to school in the morning.A teacher and President of the Duluth Federation of Teachers ( a co-sponsor of the event) spoke about how teachers' jobs had changed after all of the school shootings because now they have to think about an active shooter in their building and classroom and go through lock-down drills that traumatize kids and educators alike.
A gun owner spoke about how the NRA is fear mongering scaring people into thinking they must have their guns for self protection. He said that it isn't gun safety reform that threatens their rights but rather it is gun violence itself. And further, no legal gun owners' rights will be affected if common sense gun legislation measures are passed. They are lying.
The President of the Duluth chapter of the NAACP spoke about and remembered his brother and sister, both victims of shootings. A leader from the native American community spoke about how gun violence has affected his members. I read a statement from a transgender leader from our community who could not attend but spoke about how much guns and gun violence affect their community- both homicides and suicides. A veteran remembered the many veterans who die daily from gun suicides.
Gun violence affects us all. So many people are suffering from the after effects of shootings that have torn their families apart. The last speaker was a local woman whose brother was shot and killed last December- almost one year ago now. From the article:
For Wendy Waha, that person was Kevin John Weiss, killed in a shooting a year and three days earlier outside a Gary-New Duluth residence.
"Our innocence has been shattered, and life feels a lot less safe and a lot more violent," Waha said. "We now think about things like guns, and that such a weapon doesn't allow for second chances, or grace, or restorative ends to conflict."
Waha spoke calmly and forcefully for nearly five minutes. But when it came time to say her brother's name before ringing the bell, she faltered. After tearfully reciting his name, she added, "I would ask everyone here to please take action to do something that helps put common (sense) gun laws into place in order to end this insanity."
Yes. Our innocence has been shattered. It is never the same. For the parents of the children shot 7 years ago today at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, they are now coming to grips with the idea that their children have been dead as long as they were alive. I read an article about the family of Noah Pozner, one of the children killed, as they deal with the ugly and offensive hoaxers who claim that Sandy Hook never happened and they have attacked these families and made their lives miserable. Their grief should have been enough. But this is so over the top, there are hardly words:
A month before what would have been his son Noah's 13th birthday, Lenny Pozner told a jury about the last time he saw him, when he dropped him off at school on Dec. 14, 2012.
"It was cold, but he jumped out not wearing his jacket, and he had one arm in one sleeve and his backpack on the other arm, and he was kind of juggling both and walking into the school that way," Mr. Pozner told a Wisconsin jury in October. "And that's — that's the last visual that I have of Noah." (…) "We had a private viewing where we opened the coffin, and I got a chance to say one last goodbye to Noah," Mr. Pozner said, as some jurors wept. "I remember saying goodbye to him and kissing him on his forehead," which because the child had been shot in the face, "was the only part of him that was not covered."
Do our leaders get this? Noah's forehead was all that was left of his face. Dying by bullets from a gun is gruesome. The Duluth Police Chief spoke about how officers and first responders cannot unsee what they see when at the scene of a shooting. And the health care community also suffers from PTSD and the nightmare of treating gunshot injuries and those who die from their injuries. A retired nurse whose father took his life by firearm when she was a young woman, spoke about how it is for those who treat gunshot victims:
We tend to the living.
Injuries include paralysis, chronic pain, Loss of limbs, Need for long term ventilators and feeding tubes PTSD, and the latest concern is lead poisoning since often bullet fragments are unable to be removed. The most memorable patient I have cared for literally was left without a face.
Think of this with the Las Vegas shooting: 58 dead, but 620 sustained injuries, many who will suffer for a lifetime. A handgun wound usually requires one surgery, but an AR15 averages 3-10 surgeries.
Gun violence is insidious. It is violent. It shatters families and communities and leaves behind it a wake of grief and PTSD. It affects us all.
Let us remember the 26 who died one year ago today. Please watch this YouTube video. It is emotional and powerful.
A veritable shoot-out in New Jersey
December 11, 2019 December 11, 2019 commongunsenseanit-Semitism and guns, Gun Violence Archive, hate groups, Jersey City shooting, mass shooting, NRA, Police Officer shootings, Tree of Life Synagogue shooting
Remember the shoot-out at the OK Corral? It just happened again in modern day America yesterday in Jersey City, New Jersey. 6 are dead after hours of bullets flying in the streets and people going about their everyday lives taking cover in corners, behind desks or wherever they could get to safety.
Just look at the photos in the linked article of men literally marching down the street in fatigues with their rifles held at the ready to shoot. Does that look like a community going about its' business to you? Or does it look like a war zone? Almost every day there is a war going on in our country. On the 10th day of the month there have been 10 mass shootings.
This is the NRA's America. This is the America where elected leaders turn their backs on the carnage. And don't get me started about what else they are turning their backs on.
Innocent people become targets of bullets every day either purposely or inadvertently- mostly on purpose. And more disturbing is that it appears that the shooting was a hate crime though investigations continue:
An assailant involved in a prolonged firefight in Jersey City, N.J., that left six people dead, including one police officer, had published anti-Semitic and anti-police posts online and investigators believe the attack was motivated by those sentiments, a law enforcement official familiar with the case said on Wednesday.
The official said the names of the two suspects were David Anderson and Francine Graham. Mr. Anderson appeared to have a connection to the Black Hebrew Israelite movement, which is designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, a legal advocacy group that tracks such movements.
There you have it. One more hate crime perpetrated by haters, anti-Semites, anti-Muslim men with guns. How many more of these will our country tolerate? How many more will our leaders ignore before they decide to do something. Where do these haters get their guns?
Let's talk more about violent anti-Semitism a little more than one year after the shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh:
But one year after Pittsburgh, that is not the case. From charging that Jewish money controls Washington to saying Jews aren't truly loyal to America, the use of anti-Semitic slurs has continued across the political spectrum. Anti-Semitic incidents have not abated — nor have other incidents of virulent racism, a fact that is not unrelated.
Data released this week from the Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism shows that the United States continues to experience record numbers of anti-Semitic incidents; preliminary reporting shows 780 anti-Semitic incidents were recorded in the first six months of 2019, almost mirroring the 785 incidents reported during the same period in 2018.
These acts are not just the work of right-wing extremists, nor are they limited to murderous occurrences. They include anti-Semitic taunts and graffiti, and harassment and assaults directed at religious Jews. In the first half of this year, there were 200 such incidents in New York City alone. They form an arc of extremism that is accelerating as hate is normalized and as individuals are radicalized with alarming ease, due in part to the growth and design of social media.
Here we are once again. If you have watched any coverage of this shooting you will here the constant sound of gunshots on the streets of Jersey City. This is insanity itself. One of the dead is a police officer who has been working hard to get guns off the streets of his community. His 5 children are now fatherless:
The fallen officer was identified as Det. Joseph Seals, a 15-year veteran of the department, Kelly said.Seals was part of a statewide anti-violence unit, and Kelly credited him with removing "dozens and dozens" of handguns from the street."We believe he was killed while trying to interdict these bad guys," Kelly told reporters, adding, "Once again, this is all being investigated."The officer who was killed is believed to have been ambushed, according to a law enforcement source.
Sigh. We've seen this movie before. Even armed officers are not immune from being shot dead by others with guns.
Here's the thing. We have too many guns on our streets. Some are legally purchased by law abiding gun owners. Some are legally purchased by prohibited people because background checks are not required for every gun sale. Some are illegally obtained be being stolen, through a straw purchase or by gun trafficking ( where guns are sometimes obtained legally and then sold to illegal gun purchasers).
It's also one more mass shooting. It's Dec. 11th. There have been 11 mass shootings so far in December according to the Gun Violence Archive.
There is no common sense when it comes to our gun culture or our gun laws, or lack thereof. And that is our national disgrace, our national nightmare, our national tragedy, our national epidemic of gun violence.
We are truly better than this. If we aren't shame on us.
Just a few more broken hearts
December 9, 2019 December 9, 2019 commongunsense"law abiding" gun owners, access to guns, Child Access Prevention Laws, domestic shootings, Extreme Risk Protection Orders, kids and guns, legal guns, mass shootings, national vigil for gun violence victims, Pensacola navy base shooting, safer storage of guns, Sandy Hook shooting anniversary, terrorism and guns, threats with guns, victims of gun violence
We've had another of those weeks. We've had just a few too many shootings and more than a few broken hearts. It's America after all. What do we expect? We've also had some scary incidents like this one where a woman with a gun decided to threaten a McDonald's employee over giving her jelly instead of ketchup. I mean wouldn't that just make you so mad that you would want to kill someone? And if you had a gun you could.
She should have her gun rights and permit to carry taken away from her. She is clearly dangerous to others. From the article:
She was arrested Tuesday and charged with three counts of aggravated assault and unlawful possession of a weapon.
Oh right. She possessed the weapon unlawfully. How does that happen? Where did she get her gun?
Another "law abiding gun owner" was in the news this past week for leaving her gun around for her toddler to find. The toddler, thinking it was a toy gun, put it in his mouth and shot and killed himself last year. The Colorado woman was sentenced to 24 years in prison. Responsible gun owners lock up their guns so toddlers can't find them. Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult. Kids and guns don't go together well.
We had another mass shooting at a military base. There have been a number of these. Pensacola Navy Base suffered through it this time. A Saudi air force member in the U.S. for training at the base opened fire and killed 3, injured 8 and law enforcement then killed him. Sound familiar?
Investigations are continuing about whether this was a terror attack on the U.S. I believe all mass shootings are terror attacks but if this shooter was associated with an actual known terrorist group, then it will likely be labeled a terror attack. I believe that would the first official one since 9/11. Time will tell. He bought his gun legally by the way. Sometimes legal guns and law abiding gun owners do bad things with their guns. Guns are lethal weapons designed to kill others.
One thing of grave concern is this:
The night before the attack, Lieutenant Alshamrani showed videos of mass shootings at a dinner party, according to a person who was briefed on the investigation.
Only in America could a would-be mass shooter have videos of mass shootings available to him. Only in America. Only in America can we have so much to write about regarding shootings and firearms incidents. Only in America do these things happen so regularly that we often pay them attention briefly and move on. We've already moved on.
Oh yes, there was almost another mass shooting in San Diego last week but the potential shooter stupidly posted things on his Facebook page that were alarming. Police were able to gain a search warrant:
Steve Andrew Homoki, 30, was arrested and charged with multiple felony assault weapons charges, possession of a high capacity magazine, and child endangerment.
San Diego Police say Homoki posted graphic videos online depicting assault weapons being pointed at unknowing pedestrians outside The Sofia Hotel in downtown San Diego.
California has passed an Extreme Risk Protection Order so law enforcement can take guns away from those who are a danger to themselves or others. Gun laws work. Thank goodness we didn't have to wake up to yet another mass shooting last week.
So with more broken hearts this past week, the victims and survivors' families will never move on. That's the American tragedy. I wrote an opinion piece for my local newspaper last week after 2 heinous domestic shooting incidents in Minneapolis. It sickened me to think of a father, as I wrote in my last post, shooting his young sons as he greeted them at the door and they ran out into the snow. We ought to all be outraged by this. Many of us are. But not the ones who can do something about it- namely the Republican led U.S. Senate.
Last week was the annual national vigil for victims of gun violence started after the Sandy Hook shooting 7 years ago. As is the tradition, victims come forth with photos of their loved ones and speak their names. There are speakers and reflections about gun violence- once again. It's a broken record and it's broken hearts over and over and over again.
In Duluth we will have a community gathering on Friday to highlight how gun violence affects us all. It does. If we had any common sense we wouldn't let it continue unabated.
So this was last week. A new week has begun. No doubt there will be "just a few shootings" again.
It's in our hands to do the right thing. We will keep pushing, lighting candles, demanding action, ringing bells, writing articles, testifying at hearings, lobbying, rallying and whatever it takes.
Knives, tusks, guns and terror attacks
December 1, 2019 December 1, 2019 commongunsense"accidental shootings", #DoSomething, Brady background checks, Congress and gun laws, good guys with guns, gun homicides, gun suicides, guns and terror watch list, guns and veterans, guns for self defense, home grown terrorists, illegal guns, kids and access to guns, knives and terror attacks, London terror attack, majority support for reasonable gun laws, mass shootings, military suicides, Narwhal tusk, officer involved shootings, PTSD and shootings, public carrying of guns, safe gun storage, Senator Mitch McConnell, Supreme Court and gun laws, terror attacks, terrorists and guns
The world stopped for a while on Friday when a now known terrorist killed 2 innocent British citizens in a knife attack. Bystanders acted quickly by grabbing something called a narwhal tusk and a few fire extinguishers before police arrived with guns to shoot him. (A narwhal tusk is very long and sharp, made of ivory) Much has been made of these brave citizens who acted without thinking about their own safety. Likely they saved more innocent people from being killed or injured. And- without guns.
Raise your hand if you have heard of a narwhal tusk used as a weapon.
(As an aside, I actually saw a narwhal tusk on display while at the Hofburg palace museum in Vienna in October. It was a curious item to be displayed there and we wondered at the time about it. It turns out to be an item of the myth of Unicorns.)
Let us stop for a minute to remember the two victims of the attack- both graduates of Cambridge University:
Saskia Jones, 23, and Jack Merritt, 25, were both involved with Learning Together, a network of academics and criminal justice organizations, which was hosting an event at Fishmonger's Hall where the attack began on Friday.
In the United Kingdom, citizens do not carry guns nor do they own many of them without a lot of regulations and laws. Police did not used to be armed but are now, given the world in which we live. Fairly regular terror attacks have occurred in the UK- none with firearms. Many have died but it doesn't even come close to the toll of American lives lost in armed terror attacks in our country:
Terrorist attacks are much more likely to involve firearms in the U.S. than in many other high-income industrialized countries, a new study suggests.
Researchers examined data on 2,817 terrorist attacks in the United States, Canada, Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand from 2002 to 2016.
Nearly all of the countries with attacks had at least 10 incidents. Among these countries, the U.S. had the highest proportion of attacks involving guns, at 20 percent, followed by the Netherlands at 14 percent.
"The overall burden of firearm violence is much greater in the United States compared to other high-income countries," said lead study author Dr. Robert Tessler of the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center and the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle.
"Our findings indicate that terrorist attacks involving firearms are deadlier compared to attacks with other weapons, regardless of the country," Tessler said by email.
We should also remember that in the U.S. those on the known terror watch list can legally buy guns because we have not made it illegal.
There is a truth here that seems to go unnoticed by our elected officials in Congress who are beholden to the influence of the corporate gun lobby instead of to the majority of Americans who want them to protect us from senseless gun violence. I should say that these leaders notice but choose to do nothing. Since the U.S. House passed the bill requiring Brady background checks on all gun sales in February of this year, 27,670 Americans have died from firearms injuries.
#DoSomething
As long as Senator Mitch McConnell (President Trump) is in charge of the Senate, we can expect to see more deaths of innocent Americans. They are happening all around us every day. Suicides, homicides and "accidental" gun deaths are in news reports today as I write. There is no common sense amongst Senate Republicans at the moment. Their hands are bloodied and stained with their willful neglect and refusal to do what's right.
And as long as there are people who insist on perpetuating the myth that more people with guns in public places ( "good guys with guns") can save the day to stop terror attacks, the deaths will continue. A friend of our very own President had this to say about the terror attack in London:
"Takeaway from #LondonBridge incident: If law-abiding Londoners could carry firearms legally, it probably wouldn't have happened. Amazing how bold the terrorists are when they know their victims will be unarmed," he wrote.
Piers Morgan was among those to criticise Wohl's response, with the Irish Post Award winner tweeting: "How can anyone be this dumb?"
Dumb is a good word for it. Just how would a "good guy" with a gun have been in the exact place when a terrorist decided to attack? And just what would that armed citizen have done to stop an attack that took place in a flash of a second surprising innocent people going about their business? And what makes those who say these dumb things believe they, themselves, would be able to act so quickly to save the day when chaos reigns and adrenaline is taking over the ability to act calmly and rationally? And just what makes those who believe in this myth believe that when law enforcement arrives on the scene, as they usually do pretty quickly, they themselves will not be mistaken for the attacker?
Alas, none of these common sense questions have answers that make any sense-except to themselves.
Rather than prevent so many guns from getting into the hands of people who should not have them or flood our streets with guns, our leaders are aiding and abetting the flooding of weapons into our streets, homes, businesses and public places. And, for the record, many of these guns used in attacks are could possibly have been prevented with stronger laws to keep the perpetrators from getting guns in the first place:
Mass shootings are not a random, inevitable element of American life today. Rather, this report illuminates trends that can help point lawmakers to strategies to curb these tragedies. These trends include that mass shootings are often:
perpetrated by someone who was legally prohibited from possessing a firearm;
perpetrated by someone who displayed prior warning signs;
intermingled with acts of domestic violence; and
far deadlier when they involve assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.
All of our mass shootings to me are domestic terror attacks. Some have involved weapons legally owned such as at the Aurora theater shooting, the Sutherland Springs church shooting,( though he should have been prohibited), the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, and others.
Until we put our collective heads together to solve and treat our national gun violence epidemic, we will have more terror attacks, mass shootings, suicides, homicides and small children finding guns they shouldn't have to shoot themselves or someone else avoidably and senselessly.
A 14 year old Texas boy found a gun and shot and gravely injured himself. It was a "reckless injury" as reported by law enforcement. The mother said her son had access to guns in the home. The 3 boys were passing it around. Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.
In the same story linked above, the police officer reported in great detail about an officer involved shooting. A Texas airman, obviously suicidal, aimed his weapon at the officers who responded. He then shot and killed himself with his weapon.
Lock up those guns all of you "law abiding" gun owners and good guys with guns. Be aware of military members, veterans and the risk of suicide.
Just today, in the midst of a lot of snow, 2 Minneapolis children were shot and killed while playing outside in the snow. What the H$%T?
11 were injured in a mass shooting at a celebration in New Orleans. Guns and altercations do not go together. Do people need guns at a rowdy celebration? Not really. It's obviously dangerous and reckless.
And at the National Zoo in D.C. a family thought that fireworks let off by some people nearby were gunshots, closing down the zoo.
The country has PTSD from so many shootings in public places. We shouldn't have to live like this. From the article:
On Twitter, some visitors inside the zoo said the false alarm caused panic.
"Within 10 minutes people calmed," Twitter Ashley (@WeinDC) wrote.
"But people were running and carrying kids and screaming gun. It wasn't great."
Another Twitter user by the name of Sammie Fritts said that her and her husband left immediately after hearing others shout about a shooter.
'We didn't stay long enough to find out," she wrote. "My husband saw my anxiety attack about to happen and got me out of there asap."
It is still unclear how many kids had the fireworks and where they were shot from.
We have a serious unsolved problem.
And while we are reporting on all of these senseless shootings, the gun lobby is hoping the Supreme Court will come down in favor of their notion that the second amendment means that people have a right to carry guns in public. In the aftermath of and the midst of mass shootings and school shootings after shootings, will the Court come down on the side of common sense? In light of the fact that more guns in public places have resulted in more death and injury it would be a travesty if the Court expanded the meaning of the second amendment.
So there we have it. More people are dying from gun injuries. Some people believe stupidly that more guns make us safer wherever we are, including from unexpected terror attacks. Children and teens are harming or killing themselves on a regular basis. Senseless homicides are happening all over the country- even in a Minneapolis snow bank. Military members and veterans are using firearms to kill themselves at a stunning rate of 22 per day. And the gun rights community wants to expand gun rights.
We are better than this. Where is common sense?
Hopeful and thankful
November 27, 2019 commongunsense#thisismylane, Brady, businesses take stands on open carry, corporate gun lobby, Dick's Sporting Goods, El Paso Texas shooting, Giffords, gun lobby myths, gun safety, guns for self defense, health care providers and guns, March for Our Lives, mass shootings, Moms Demand Action, NRA, open carrying of guns, President Trump's rhetoric, Thanksgiving, Trump impeachment, Virginia 2019 elections, Walmart shootings, women in political office, Women's March on DC
As bleak as things seem right now in our country, I have hope that common sense will win over corruption, gun violence, climate change denial, affordable health care opponents and the many other politically charged issues of our time. In the end, right usually wins but it is going to take a lot of hard work.
Something interesting is happening now. The latest polling on impeachment shows a difference between men and women when it comes to support for it.
And the poll marks the first time that more than 60% of women have said they backed impeaching Trump and removing him from office (61% say so now, compared with 56% in October and 51% in May), even as a majority of men remain opposed to impeachment (53% oppose it).
In my opinion women look at verbal abuse, sexual abuse, domestic violence, gun violence, the economy, family leave, affordable child care, corruption, health care, freedom to choose, and a myriad of other problems to solve differently from men. That is because they are much more often the victims than men. Inequality has a way of changing your life view. Minority groups of all kinds understand that perfectly well.
The day after President Trump was inaugurated I participated in the Women's March, sitting on a bus from Duluth to DC and back to make my voice heard. Along with more than a million others- mostly women but also men and children, we let America know that we were not in support of a man who exhibited bullying, boorish, abusive and intolerant behavior during the campaign and still, to this day.
According to what I have seen the Women's March organization, going strong still after the March in January of 2017. Watch for more in the coming weeks.
Also going strong is March For Our Lives, formed after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida in 2017. Their Facebook and Twitter feeds are active with thousands of supporters. And the members, some whose names are better known than others, have written a plan for Congress to enact on gun safety reform. It is called a Peace Plan for a Safer America. The name of their plan says it all. There is hope when our young people can write legislation for a safer America that is better and more comprehensive than the adults have come up so far.
Gun violence prevention groups are stronger than ever making a big difference in the lives of Americans and also on the political scene. Brady and Moms Demand Action and Giffords canvassed in the state of Virginia in the 2019 recent election that turned the legislature blue. Candidates were endorsed and campaign contributions came from individuals and groups alike. It worked. It is one of the first times the gun lobby has been outspent and out maneuvered. There is hope.
Businesses have stepped up to the plate as they have watched our kids and communities experience horrendous mass shootings. Dick's Sporting Goods stopped selling assault rifles and the business is booming. This is totally contrary to the corporate gun lobby mantra that gun sales are necessary for businesses to make a profit. The corporate nature of the corporate gun lobby is not doing so well with their messaging. Not selling guns sends a message that some people just don't want to buy them and don't feel comfortable when a store is selling them.
After the shooting at an El Paso, Texas Walmart, a decision was made to stop selling ammunition for assault style rifles and handguns. ( they had previously stopped selling assault rifles). And open carriers of guns are not welcome in their stores. That is a good move considering how many "accidental" gun discharges have happened inside of Walmart stores. What is it with Walmart stores and guns? There was just a recent shooting at a Walmart in Oklahoma leaving 3 dead. You just can't make this stuff up.
Other businesses have stood up to the perceived power and control of the gun lobby by saying they don't want people openly carrying their loaded guns inside. Shoppers really don't want to see people with guns while they are just running errands, often with their children. Here is a list of those who have decided that guns inside are not a great idea for their business. The logic of the gun rights advocates isn't making much sense any more since we understand that a gun in a business or school is more likely to be used against those inside than in self defense but never mind- some believe their gun must be at the ready at all times no matter what they are doing. From the article:
"With this world being the way it is, we've got to protect ourselves," said Howard, who worked as a construction supervisor until he broke his back on the job 15 years ago. "I haven't had to shoot anybody yet, but you never know. I've keep a fire extinguisher in my house even though I've never had to use it."
The thing is, the world in America has regular shootings that could not have been prevented by having a gun on your person. The mistake they are making is the assumption they will have time to plan to shoot someone who opens fire suddenly in a public place with absolutely no warning and no time to act. It's a myth. See my post about this- 16 seconds with a gun.
Health care providers have stepped up to say: #ThisIsOurLane after the NRA had the nerve to tell them that they should stay in their lane regarding gun violence prevention. In other words, don't talk to patients about the risks of guns to their health and well being. Physicians and other health care providers were having none of it and decided to fight back. It is their lane, of course, but never mind- the NRA doesn't want anyone interfering in their desire to normalize guns, carrying of guns in public and, apparently shootings.
But some don't want us to feel hopeful. The NRA and corporate gun lobby keeps pounding the drum of fear and paranoia about any gun safety reform. Gun sales have gone down because Donald Trump, as President, is not going to take away their guns like Obama did. Remember when he did that?
Back to my first thoughts about women wanting the changes we deserve and the nation we ought to have- without fear of being shot, abused, left without economic security, there is discussion in the article about economic prosperity and that Americans are feeling good about the economy while at the same time so many are sleeping on the streets and not able to take care of their families adequately:
In his Thanksgiving proclamation for 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt expressed gratitude for the nation's turn "to things spiritual" in the previous year. "We can truly say, 'What profiteth it a nation if it gain the whole world and lose its own soul?' " FDR wrote.
That was in the depths of the Great Depression, and Roosevelt was the incumbent. The task facing Roosevelt's political heirs is to make the case that the same principle applies during times of plenty.
When it comes to gun violence, we have lost many souls in senseless acts of violence. We have also lost our soul in the seeming acceptance and refusal to do anything about the moral crisis and national epidemic of gun violence. Those of us who care about gun violence and have experienced the death of someone close to us have volunteered and worked tirelessly to make change happen. To some extent we have succeeded. The conversation has changed. Just as it did about auto safety and bans on smoking in public places, the majority of Americans get that something must be done.
More states have passed background check, Extreme Risk Protection Orders and other laws that have reduced some of the violence. But we are not doing enough. Decades of listening to the NRA and allowing them to shape the conversation has led to a country where gun violence is actually on the rise and mass shootings are happening with increasing regularity. As that happens the public is becoming more supportive of doing something about it as the lapdog politicians for the gun lobby dig in and stand firm against all odds.
Times are changing. I still have hope. I am thankful for my family- for my grandchildren who so far have been safe from tragedy. My family, like many others, have suffered from suicide, homicide, divorces, and minor difficulties that, in the long term, have made us stronger. We carry on because we have hope and love.
I wish a Happy Thanksgiving to all. And I do mean that. For some odd ( and cynical) reason President Trump seems to think us "liberals" are at war with Thanksgiving. Not me. He is making it up to drive another wedge between us. Thanksgiving is no time to do that. Let's just enjoy the holiday and each other.
This holiday time of the year is difficult for families sensing the missed presence of a loved one or a friend and that empty chair that should have been for their son, daughter, mother, father, grandchild.
We are better than this. We are resilient. We will pass stronger gun laws. I have hope that our young people will lead the charge. And when women are put in charge of things, a different view prevails and we move towards more peaceful solutions to our problems. We will deal with a corrupt President now under impeachment. Our democracy is under attack but so far has held. We must make sure it stays that way. We will resist and persist.


Queen City Fintech, a fintech accelerator in Charlotte, is organizing the event and selected uBack as one of the startups that will show the investor community just how much talent and innovation the Southeast has to offer.
"At uBack, we've experienced firsthand the level of talent and innovation that exists in the Southeast. To be one of the few startups to participate in this conference is a tremendous honor and allows us to showcase that we (and our region) are very much a force to be reckoned with."
Honeyfi (Charlotte, NC): Honeyfi is an app that helps couples manage their finances together. LumoXchange (Little Rock, AR): LumoXchange is a one-stop shop exchange rate comparison and international payments company.
"Southern technology companies are beginning to boom," says Levi Morehouse, CEO and Founder of Ceterus. "I'm excited to pitch Ceterus at the conference and show venture capital companies that the Southeast is a great place to invest."
For more information about the Southeast Fintech Venture Conference, please call Sarah Smith at 203-804-4881, email ssmith@qcfintech.co, or visit qcfintech.co/se-fintech-venture- conference.