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Home /Sports
5 Notable Athletes Who Overcame Diabetes
by Allen Weiner | More Articles: Sports
Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
It takes a sad, scary headline to get our attention and provide a shivering dose of reality. For example, some 16 years after his initial diagnosis, baseball great and Hall of Famer Lou Brock had his leg amputated from diabetes complications.
When we think of professional athletes — no matter what sport — these conditioned men and women are viewed as dunking, home-run-hitting, and slapshot-firing machines. To imagine an all-pro quarterback checking his blood glucose readings on the sidelines or a rookie forward in hockey injecting insulin between shifts contradicts our starry-eyed stereotypes.
Nonetheless, in the past several decades, a number of great players have (often quietly) dealt with diabetes while plying their trade. Understanding the difference between Type 1, often called juvenile diabetes, and Type 2, diabetes milletus, sheds some light on the extra effort it takes for a sportsman to manage his disease while performing at the highest level.
Type 1, which generally requires the need for insulin injections, is more challenging as it requires persistent blood glucose monitoring. Type 2 is often managed via diet, exercise, and oral medications. By profiling well-known athletes who have battled diabetes over the years, we can see the advances in how these stars managed the disease as well as the emotional impact it had on their careers.
1. Ron Santo
A 2012 Hall of Fame inductee, Ron Santo — considered by many to be the Cubs' all-time greatest third baseman (no offense to Rookie of the Year Kris Bryant) — clubbed 342 home runs in his 14-year career, which ended with a solo season with the crosstown ChiSox. In his career, Santo was a nine-time All-Star and won the Gold Glove five consecutive years. After his playing days, Santo spent nine years as the color commentator on Cubs radio broadcasts and a fixture at local and national charity events.
Santo, whose career began in 1960, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 18, but closely guarded his secret for fear that he would be forced into an early retirement. According to the documentary, "This Old Cub," coproduced and directed by Ron's son Jeff, the Cubs third sacker managed his disease based on his moods. If he felt his blood sugar might be low, he snacked on candy bars in the clubhouse.
In 2001 and 2002, Santo had his right and left legs respectively amputated below the knee but continued his broadcast duties while focusing on charitable work for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, including a yearly Ron Santo Walk to Cure Diabetes from 1979 to 2010. He died in December of that year in Scottsdale, Arizona due to complications with his illness.
In his last few years, Santo became a mentor to Cubs rookie Sam Fuld who also suffered from Type 1 diabetes. Fuld now plays for the Oakland A's and reports that he checks his blood sugar several times during each game and takes insulin shots when necessary.
2. Bobby Clarke
In 1962, at the age of 13, future Hockey Hall of Famer, Bobby Clarke, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. At the time, the Manitoba native was told by doctors that if he took care of himself and watched his diet, he would be able to enjoy a career on the ice. However, despite his stellar career, teams were reluctant to draft Clarke because of his medical condition. As the 17th selection of the second round of the 1969 draft, the Philadelphia Flyers took a flier on the young center based on the persistence of one of the team's scouts.
An overall ignorance about diabetes management cost Clarke some of his health in the early stages of his career. During one preseason game, Clarke suffered two diabetic seizures, which caused the team's trainers to devise a pregame and between-the-period ritual that included Coca Cola, chocolate bars, and spoonfuls of sugar. Clarke kept glucose gum and high-sugar snacks in the pockets of his uniform. His success as a hockey player who had diabetes, rather than a diabetic who played hockey, became the inspiration for the Phoenix Coyotes' top draft pick in 2013, Max Domi.
3. Jay Cutler
Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Two years after being selected in the first round of the 2006 NFL draft, Cutler began noticing symptoms, such as unexpected weight loss of more than 30 pounds during the 2007 season. Chalking it up to stress, a blood test revealed that Cutler has Type 1 diabetes. He spent the summer prior to the 2008 season coming up with a new health plan.
Prior to a game, Cutler tests his blood sugar and looks for a higher-than-normal reading, knowing that adrenaline can impact his numbers. After the first series of the game, Cutler checks his blood to get a feel for how things are going in the flow of the contest. The former Vanderbilt star says the last thing he wants to do is freak out his teammates by passing out in the huddle.
Diehard Cutler fans will recall the Pro Bowl baptism that the star QB got from his teammates Peyton Manning and Nick Mangold. The duo snuck up on Cutler and tossed him into the pool at their Honolulu hotel, taking care to avoid dunking the Bears signal-caller's cellphone. What the perpetrators did not realize was Cutler was carrying his blood glucose meter (aka glucometer) which goes on the fritz when underwater. Luckily, a few calls to local pharmacies avoided turning a well-meaning prank into a potential disaster.
4. Max Domi
In contrast to the great Ron Santo, who kept his diabetes a secret, Max Domi, son of legendary hockey enforcer Tie Domi, wears his illness proudly. On his left forearm, Max sports a tattoo (his personal medical alert notice), which graphically announces that he has Type 1 diabetes.
As a 12-year-old star Canadian junior, Max recalls asking his mother to frequently pull the car over after a tournament as he alternated between needing something to drink and urinating. His concerned mom took him to the doctor who revealed the diabetes diagnosis. While in the hospital to learn about his disease, Max heard about Clarke's struggle with diabetes, which fueled his desire to not let the disease stand in the way of a successful pro hockey career. Wearing the No. 16 as a tribute to his hero, the Winnipeg-born player was selected by the Arizona Coyotes as the 12th overall pick in the 2013 NHL entry draft.
After years of injections, Max manages his diabetes by wearing an insulin pump, which dispenses insulin at regular intervals through the game. Between shifts on the ice, depending on how he is feeling, Max checks his blood sugar to ensure it is regulated, which keeps his energy level consistent. In his first season in the NHL, Max is off to a quick start with eight goals and eight assists in 16 games. Max's style is the polar opposite of his dad, a noted enforcer who amassed more than 3,500 penalty minutes in his career with the New York Rangers, Winnipeg Jets, and Toronto Maple Leafs.
5. Patrick Peterson
Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Arizona Cardinal cornerback Patrick Peterson's battle with Type 2 diabetes is wrought with mystery, but certainly a sign as to why his 2014 campaign did not measure up to his previous star-studded, all-pro seasons. While the details are somewhat unclear, Peterson was diagnosed at some point after the 2014 season as having "borderline diabetes" blood sugar problems.
The former LSU star's weight ballooned to more than 235 pounds, far above his normal game weight of about 205. Around the time of the 2015 Combine, Cardinals coach Bruce Arians told NBC's Mike Florio that Peterson, along with the team's medical staff, had the situation under control. Peterson goes into a bit more detail in this blog post on his own website.
The issue was raised during the Arizona vs. Seattle Sunday Night Football telecast when announcers Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth attempted to shine a positive light on Peterson's condition, but fumbled the mention, saying that the Cardinal player reversed his Type 2 diabetes. As many with better knowledge on the subject matter have pointed out, with a careful diet, Peterson reversed the impact and symptoms, but not the illness. Regardless, these renowned athletes demonstrated courage and perseverance with their diabetes diagnoses.


A must-read for fans of David Nicholls, THE SHOCK OF THE FALL and THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME. Ben Jewell has hit breaking point. His ten-year-old son, Jonah, has never spoken. So when Ben and Jonah are forced to move in with Ben's elderly father, three generations of men - one who can't talk; two who won't - are thrown together. As Ben battles single fatherhood, a string of well-meaning social workers and his own demons, he learns some difficult home truths. Jonah, blissful in his ignorance, becomes the prism through which all the complicated strands of personal identity, family history and misunderstanding are finally untangled. Funny and heart-breaking in equal measure, Shtum is a story about families, forgiveness and finding a light in the darkest days.


Eli Libson, designer of mini golf hole #4, Squirrel Scrambler, will be using his 17 years of experience in video game character design to assist people in creating their own Chimera – an ancient Greek creature. Participants will be given images of partially completed creatures to add legs, eyes, feathers or whatever suits their fancy to create their own mythical beast.
Drop in anytime between 11am-3pm. Great for all ages!


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Council to continue Foodbank support for another year
City of Wolverhampton Council is set to extend its support to the city's foodbanks for another year.
The council has been delivering vital supplies to a network of foodbanks across the city since the start of the pandemic and has so far delivered 850,000 meals.
A meeting of the council's cabinet resources panel will next week be asked to agree to provide £450,000 to extend this support for a further 12 months.
Foodbanks have been hit hard by the pandemic with many of their volunteers being required to shield and fewer donations at a time when demand for help from people in financial crisis has risen.
Leader of City of Wolverhampton Council, Cllr Ian Brookfield, said: "Our approach is simple - we look after our own and no-one gets left behind. The pandemic has made life really difficult for our city's network of foodbanks who provide vital help for people in financial crisis.
"Demand for this help has gone up as more people are struggling financially, but the donations the foodbanks rely on to keep going have dropped and many of their volunteers are older people who have needed to shield.
"This is why, early in the pandemic, we took a decision to directly support Wolverhampton foodbanks by providing them with weekly supplies. We have continued to do that ever since and because we know that the economic effects of the pandemic will go on, we are set to continue with that support for another 12 months.
"I am hugely proud of the way our council has ensured people have been able to put food on the table during this pandemic, whether it be through the 1.3 million meals were delivered to people who were shielding during the first lockdown, the 850,000 meals we've sent to foodbanks or support for families who couldn't afford to feed their kids over the school holidays."
One of the foodbanks to benefit from the council's support is based at the Excel Church in Bilston.
Councillor Beverley Momenabadi, who regularly volunteers at the Excel foodbank, said: "The Excel Church Food Bank opened a year ago. It initially opened in response to the pandemic, but it has uncovered a huge ongoing need in the area.
"The ongoing support from the city council will be a great assistance to foodbanks like ours who rely on donations and the efforts of volunteers to keep supporting people in need."
Every food parcel delivered to the foodbanks contains enough basic supplies to feed a person for a week. A typical parcel will contain: cereal, bread, soup, pasta, rice, tinned tomatoes/pasta sauce, a tinned vegetarian meal, baked beans, tinned vegetables, tinned fruit. Tea/coffee, biscuits and UHT milk.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Religion and the Politics of Identity in Kosovo
C. Hurst, 2000 - Albanians - 238 pages
Kosovo is a frontier society where two Balkan nations, Albanian and Serb, as well as two religions, Islam and Christianity, clash. This rift has often been perceived as a hard and fast line of division, but the area also has a history of co-existence across these boundaries, through cultural contact, religious exchange and conversion. The tension between conflict and symbiosis lies at the core of this text, which contains seven case studies of various ethnic and religious groups, each of which examines how religion - Islam, Roman Catholicism or Eastern Orthodox - shapes their efforts to construct or reconstruct their identities.
Gerlachlus Duijzings
Postsocialism: Ideals, Ideologies, and Practices in Eurasia
C. M. Hann
Title Religion and the Politics of Identity in Kosovo
Author Ger Duijzings
Publisher C. Hurst, 2000


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Home Ask Dr T The MASS II Study
Dr T September 7, 2011 Papers, Professionals Leave a Comment
MASS II [i] is a small, single-center study designed to compare the long term effects of Medical Therapy (MT), Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) or Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) among patients with stable angina, multivessel CAD and preserved ventricular function. Patients selected were appropriate candidates for all 3 therapies.
In MASS II 611 patients were randomly assigned to CABG (n=203), PCI (n=205), or MT (n=203). The 10-year survival rates were 74.9% with CABG, 75.1% with PCI, and 69% with MT (P=0.089). The trial's primary end point was a composite of total mortality, Q-wave MI, and refractory angina requiring revascularization. Secondary end points included angina status, death due to a cardiac cause, and stroke.
At 5-year follow-up no significant differences were found between MT and PCI in the primary end points. CABG was superior than MT and PCI, although the difference in mortality was not significant.
However, a significant 47% risk reduction for CABG was noted in the incidence of primary end points during 5 years of follow-up (P=0.001, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.36 to 0.77).
Primary End points at 10 years
The 10-year rates of myocardial infarction were 10.3% with CABG, 13.3% with PCI, and 20.7% with MT (P=0.010). The 10-year rates of additional revascularizations were 7.4% with CABG, 41.9% with PCI, and 39.4% with MT (P=0.001). Relative to the composite end point, Cox regression analysis showed a higher incidence of primary events in MT than in CABG (hazard ratio 2.35, 95% confidence interval 1.78 to 3.11) and in PCI than in CABG (hazard ratio 1.85, 95% confidence interval 1.39 to 2.47). Furthermore, 10-year rates of freedom from angina were 64% with CABG, 59% with PCI, and 43% with MT (P=0.001).
At 10 years follow-up, the MASS II trial found a strong, independent, protective association between CABG and the composite primary end point compared with MT and PCI after adjustment for sex, smoking, total cholesterol, previous MI, hypertension, diabetes, and the number of diseased vessels. Additionally, MT patients had less relief from symptomatic angina than did patients who underwent CABG or PCI.
Figure 1. Probability of event-free survival (free of overall mortality, unstable angina that required revascularization, or Q-wave MI) among patients in the MT, CABG, and PCI treatment groups.
Figure 2. HRs measuring association between composite end point and treatment allocation: CABG vs PCI.
The lowest rate of repeat revascularization procedures (from the present study) was noted after CABG, whereas a substantial proportion of patients undergoing MT alone (39%) crossed over to revascularization, and 41.9% of PCI patients required repeat revascularization procedures.
The 10-year results of MASS-II indicate that revascularization with CABG, improves the outcomes of patients with multivessel disease in comparison to MT and PCI in important events such cardiac death and MI, as well as subsequent revascularization procedures.
[i] Ten-Year Follow-Up Survival of the Medicine, Angioplasty, or Surgery Study (MASS II). Whady Hueb,et al. Circulation 2010;122;949-957


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Colts Daily Headlines: January 9th Edition
Intro: Each morning Colts.com will take a look at the top headlines surrounding the Indianapolis Colts from around the globe.
Kevin Bowen
INDIANAPOLIS – The Colts finish up their week of practice this morning before departing for the east coast tomorrow afternoon. Today's news looks at the calming influences of Tom Brady and Andrew Luck, Pep Hamilton versus Bill Belichik and what the Patriots offense will be facing in the Colts defense.
Take a look below at the top pieces fromThursday, January 9th.Brady, Luck demand more of their receiversBy: Stephen Holder, Indy Star
Holder looks at the two quarterbacks in Saturday's divisional matchup that have been mainstays for the entire season.
When Brady and Luck square off on Saturday, they'll each be doing so after having adapted their games to new, unfamiliar receivers without sharp declines in production or wins.
For all that's required of NFL quarterbacks – read defenses, change plays, understand schemes – there are, perhaps, few things more valuable than the ability to get the most out of the players who surround them.
In the case of Luck, it's become clear he is dangerous whether throwing to Reggie Wayne or the likes of LaVon Brazill. And where Brady is concerned, he has proven that whether his featured receiver is tight end Rob Gronkowski or little-known Julian Edelman — who went from a career-high 21 receptions last season to 105 this season — he can be effective nonetheless.
"Over the course of playing a few years we lost certain guys at certain points in the year," Brady said. "I think the main thing is just to try to figure out what you need to do as an offense to still be productive. You can lose a tight end or receiver or running back at any point in any game, and no one really feels sorry for you at that point. You just got to figure out a way to get as many yards and score as many points as you can."
Hamilton vs. Belichick will be one of Saturday's key matchupsBy: George Bremer, The Herald Bulletin
When Bill Belichick hangs up the whistle one day, he will eventually be inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame.
This week though he's the opposing Colts coach and Belichick spoke very highly of Indianapolis offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton.
"We know that they had a lot of success last week against Kansas City, and we certainly have to be ready for that," Belichick said. "Maybe that will be what we get, but maybe that will be more of a game plan for Kansas City. Maybe they'll look at us differently, maybe they won't. We'll just have to wait until Saturday to see on that. But Pep looks like a very game-plan oriented coach, and it's hard to predict exactly what they're going to do from game to game."
Some of this certainly is gamesmanship.
Belichick is a master of mental warfare, and he'll seek any advantage he can get. But the battle of wits between the league's foremost defensive-minded head coach and the Colts' rising young offensive coordinator will be one of the game's most important matchups.
Hamilton has been down this road before, helping to devise game plans to attack some of Belichick's best New England defenses from 2003-05 as an offensive assistant for the rival New York Jets.
That experience showed Hamilton just how difficult the challenge can be. The Jets went 0-6 against the Patriots in those three seasons, averaging 11.7 points per game.
"I think you know they're going to be well-prepared and well-versed in all the different disguises and the different things that they feel like they can do to try and create uncertainty for our offense presnap," Hamilton said. "It'll be a tremendous challenge. I coached in the same division for three years with Coach Belichick, and it was always truly a chess match."
Indy philosophy on 'D' right up Tom Brady's alleyBy: Jeff Howe, The Boston Herald
While the Belichick/Hamilton matchup is intriguing this week, less attention has been made of the Colts defense facing Tom Brady.
"They're actually a vanilla defense," said wide receiver Kenbrell Thompkins, who also noted the defensive backs' talent and athleticism on the outside. "The DBs happen to play a lot of off coverage. We'll probably have some freedom on the outside if we actually run some catch-and-run routes to be able to get the ball quick and be able to get going downfield. I think they do a great job of playing a lot of sound defense."
Some noticeable trends, both positive and negative, pop up while studying the Colts pass defense. First, while the linebackers and defensive backs are often in the chase position, they're excellent tacklers, and there are very few yards to be had after the catch.
Second, cornerbacks Vontae Davis and Darius Butler defend the vertical routes very well because of their athleticism. That's partly why they play off the line, because they've got good range, hip movement and athleticism to break up throws outside the numbers. Yet, those routes don't suit the Pats' strengths anyway, and a likely lack of Aaron Dobson would further that notion.
Finally, the Colts do a decent job of disguising their coverages before the snap, though their blitzes don't appear to be terribly frustrating. One key after the snap involves the inside linebackers in their 3-4 base. While the corners play a lot of man and concede inside patterns, the availability of those routes will be determined by inside linebackers Jerrell Freeman and Kelvin Sheppard.


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Coronavirus outbreak hits Dover assisted living facility
DOVER — State health officials announced Thursday that Bellamy Fields, a 50-bed assisted living facility in Dover, is the site of one of three new coronavirus outbreaks in the Granite State.
Bellamy Fields' COVID-19 outbreak had impacted 12 residents and eight staff members as of Thursday afternoon, according to facility Administrator Stephanie Carberry. Those numbers are up from the five employees and five staff who tested positive Wednesday.
State health officials said Thursday the other two outbreaks are at the Institute of Professional Practice in Concord and the Residence at Salem Woods in Salem.
Officials announced the outbreaks, two new deaths related to the virus and 71 new confirmed cases Thursday. New Hampshire now has a total of 34 deaths and 1,211 cases.
"(The numbers of cases) are not going down," Gov. Chris Sununu said. "They really aren't. Especially in some of these long-term care facilities where some of our most vulnerable citizens and family members are we're still seeing the mortality rate unfortunately take its toll."
Bellamy Fields is at 150 Garrison Road. It specializes in caring for people with Alzheimer's disease, dementia and related disorders.
Carberry and Bellamy Fields owner Dr. John Hopkins said their facility reported its first positive test to the state and has been in close contact with local, state and federal officials about the outbreak.
Hopkins and Carberry also said they have been in contact with all their residents' families and are following all guidelines and recommendations to contain the outbreak and ensure the safety of residents and staff.
Bellamy's first positive case involved a 90-year-old woman who presented with a fever.
"The presentation of the people with positive tests ranges from bed rest to no symptoms at all. Some people develop fevers and respond to Tylenol-type fever reduction," said Hopkins. "The treatment routines remain fever management and hydration, good nutrition, hygiene and social distancing. Staff are fully outfitted with personal protective equipment although the supplies are limited."
Staff members who tested positive were sent home and are self-quarantining at home, according to Carberry.
As of Thursday afternoon, there were no positive cases at Watson Fields, a similar Dover facility also owned and operated by Hopkins.
Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Shibinette said during a press conference Thursday the state is dispatching its mobile response clinic to long-term care facilities with positive COVID-19 cases to take specimens if the facility is not able to do that themselves.
"And we are testing all of the residents in that unit or in that facility depending on how large the outbreak is," Shibinette said.
She said that process helps "find our asymptomatic carriers and some of the outbreak numbers that we're reporting today is reflective of that expanded testing. We are seeing regular patterns of asymptomatic residents in our long-term care."
"The best place to fight this virus for long-term care facilities is literally at your door," she said. "Be sure to request appropriate testing before any of your new admissions. Set up special areas for admissions so that you are able to quarantine new residents into your building and have a very low threshold for staff sickness. Really relay to your staff that those active screening questions are very important and if they are feeling unwell at all that day that they should be excused from work."
She noted the state is proceeding with a pilot program with ConvenientMD to test for coronavirus the staff members of long-term care facilities across Hillsborough and Rockingham counties.
"In addition we are partnering with the 12th Civil Support Team to deploy an Abbott ID machine next week for point of service testing," she said. "What that is is a mobile lab that we take our new Abbott ID machine, which has a five minute turnaround, and we are going to be able to deploy that to a variety of settings, community long-term care facilities."
According to Hopkins, managing a COVID-19 outbreak in a facility like Bellamy Fields poses additional challenges compared to other long-term care facilities.
"Most of the Bellamy residents are unable to follow self-quarantine recommendations due to their cognitive impairments," Hopkins said.
As Bellamy's positive coronavirus cases grow, Hopkins said Bellamy will use one of its wings as an "infirmary" to segregate them from the rest of the community.
A note on the facility's website indicates family members have consented to "letting their family members with dementia continue to move around the building rather than imposing behavioral restrictions that would be punitive for people with advanced dementia."
The facility, like others throughout the region and country, suspended visitation and increased internal precautions last month at the recommendation of federal health officials.
Group activities programs were canceled and dining accommodations modified to practice reasonable social distancing.
"Their families have given explicit permission to refrain from punitive efforts to restrict their loved ones beyond personal hygiene and reasonable social distancing in the facilities," Hopkins said.
He thanked his staff for their "expertise and compassion" which he said are "tested every day," particularly during the pandemic.


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Rami Reyes
Principal, NextEquity Partners
Rami Reyes is a co-founder and principal at NextEquity Partners, a growth equity and venture capital firm led by former Apple and Elevation Partners executives. Prior to co-founding NextEquity Partners, Rami was a principal at Elevation Partners, where he invested in leading tech companies, including Facebook, Airbnb, Marketshare, and Sonos. Rami graduated with a B.S. in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he received the Dean's Award for Excellence, the school's top graduation award.
Rami previously served on the board of directors of MarketShare (a marketing software company acquired by Neustar) as a board observer and currently serves as a board observer on the board of directors of Business Talent Group, a leading global platform for top independent consultants. Rami co-founded the Leadership Council for Sponsors for Educational Opportunity's San Francisco Scholars Program, which helps talented lower income students get into and through college.
Irv H. Lichtenwald
Kenneth W. Kizer
Emma Cartmell
Nick Efstratis
Mike Kwatinetz
Randall S. Prust


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package iot.jcypher.domainquery.api;

import iot.jcypher.domainquery.ast.CollectExpression;
import iot.jcypher.domainquery.internal.QueryRecorder;

public class Collect extends APIObject {

	public Collect(CollectExpression ce) {
		this.astObject = ce;
	}

	/**
	 * Return the collect result as a DomainObjectMatch of specified typ
	 * (it represents a set of objects of that type).
	 * @param domainObjectType
	 * @return a DomainObjectMatch
	 */
	public <T> DomainObjectMatch<T> AS(Class<T> domainObjectType) {
		CollectExpression ce = (CollectExpression)this.astObject;
		DomainObjectMatch<T> ret =APIAccess.createDomainObjectMatch(domainObjectType,
				ce.getQueryExecutor().getDomainObjectMatches().size(),
				ce.getQueryExecutor().getMappingInfo());
		ce.setEnd(ret);
		ce.getQueryExecutor().getDomainObjectMatches().add(ret);
		QueryRecorder.recordAssignment(this, "AS", ret, QueryRecorder.literal(domainObjectType.getName()));
		return ret;
	}
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Public health law focuses on legal issues in public health practice and on the public health effects of legal practice. Public health law classically has three major areas of practice: police power, disease and injury prevention, and the law of populations. Police power areas are employed by governmental agencies. Bio terrorism is a growing center of this practice area, and public health lawyers have worked in the creation of the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act and the Model State Public Health Act. Disease and injury prevention is a broader area of public health law applies legal means to public health problems associated with disease and injury. Practitioners apply regulation, legislation, international law and private enforcement, to public health problems using the law as an instrument of public health. Litigation or private enforcement against tobacco companies in the United States provides an excellent example. Population based legal analysis is the theoretical base of public health law. The law of populations is a fairly new theoretical frame work in jurisprudence that seeks to analyze legal problems by means of the tools of epidemiology. These legal analyses can be applied to traditional public health problems but also has application in environmental law, zoning, verification, and complex tort.
Healthcare reform characteristically endeavors to broaden the population that obtains health care treatment through either public sector insurance programs or private sector insurance companies. They make efforts to expand the range of health care providers that consumers may choose among and improve the access to health care specialists. They are also concerned with the quality of health care provided and attempts to decrease the cost of health care facilities.
The health care industry treats patients who are injured, sick, disabled, or in poor health. The provision of modern health care facilities depends on expanding the inter-disciplinary and experienced team of trained professionals. The first group of Health care equipment and services consist of companies that provide medical equipment, medical supplies, and health care, such as hospitals, home health care providers, and nursing homes. The second industry group of pharmaceuticals, biotechnology & related life sciences comprises sectors companies that produce biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and miscellaneous scientific services. Medical tourism also called medical travel, health tourism or global health care is a term originally coined by travel agencies and the mass media to describe the rapidly growing practice of traveling across international borders to acquire health care. Thus, with the growing problems of health issues and easy accessibility of the health care facilities the problems of health care are being managed with mush more ease by the patients.


skeletal muscle | Run S.M.A.R.T.
In this first post of a four-part series on ultra-running, I'll address some of the physical deterioration associated with ultra-running. While physical activity by way of running is a very healthy endeavor, with extreme exertion comes health risks. A growing number of researchers are investigating whether these risks outweigh the benefits.


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Poll Question 014 – Is the Concept of Episodic Gaming is Flawed?
Jump to read the 25 comments / Leave a comment or review / Follow the comments RSS feed
For this Poll Question I have used the style of a courtroom. Just like other poll questions you should read the whole post before voting. Today I will be taking the position of Prosecutor.
Valve stands before you accused of forsaking Half-Life 3 as a full-length game in favour of episodes. This court will hear arguments from the prosecution. You, the reader, are the jury. Please use the poll option in the sidebar to register your verdict. Let the process begin.
Prosecution's Opening Statement
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, today I am going to clearly demonstrate why this serious charge against the defendant is not only true but also bad for the games industry and also bad for gamers.
I will start by getting straight to the point.
The concept of Episodic Gaming is flawed!
Let us quickly look at the supposed benefits:
Faster Release times
Ability to respond to players' criticisms
Lower Price for the consumer
Lower start-up costs for the developer
I'll counter those points one-by-one.
I think this is a red-herring because development time has been increasing ever since games were released. I've yet to see an episodic game released faster than expected! Are faster release times better? Doesn't a person gain more from waiting a little longer? Perhaps this world is too interested in a quick buck and instant pleasure.
That's not a benefit of Episodic gaming, that is one of the main benefits of systems like Steam. A developer can simply update the game quickly and easily. In the past a patch would have had to have been released. Now it is just an update. In reality there is nothing stopping a developer listening to feedback and making changes via patches. Is the time and effort taken to create a patch any different from an update? I fail to see how.
This does raise the point that shouldn't the player be allowed to choose what changes are made? Maybe they like the game as it is (Assuming they have already played the part in question). These updates are removing players' choice and should be made optional.
I paid $20 for Half-Life 2 Episode 1, now that was approximately four hours long, how long was Half-Life? 12 hours, maybe more. If episodes 1, 2 and 3 are supposed to equal a normal full game then that works out at $60 a game! Console games cost that much but not many, if any, PC games. I feel that I am going to be paying more for my episodic gaming. How is that a benefit to gamers?
This point may be valid in theory. Having to release a much smaller game will certainly reduce costs. But let's us look at the game market. Since the announcement and promotion of Episodic gaming, how many games have been released in episode form? One! SiN Emergence, which now seems to have been two episodes in one: The first and the last!
Until I see a number of successful games released in this way I will continue to believe that the whole thing is a modern version of The Emperor's New Clothes!
Story Telling and Game Mechanics
Having dispelled a number of misconceptions allow me to move onto points that are of a less factual stance but more emotive.
I play SP games mainly because of the story element. I want something to become involved in and experience different emotions. When you split stories into small segments that immersion can be lost. For me the best stories are either very short stories that allow me to continue them in my imagination or huge operas that go into details. Dune and Foundation and Earth are two perfect examples from the book world.
By creating Episodes we are fragmenting (pun intended!) that story telling and immersion. The comparison has been made by FitzroyDoll of Amphibian Mods that episodic gaming is the equivalent of a magazine article. I believe it is a very good comparison, although the direct relationship with a TV episode is perhaps more relevant. A main story line with sub-plots running through the series, each episode ending in some Cliff-Hanger. But let us not forget that these episodes are weekly and that fits into most people's routine. Also a week is not too long to have to wait for the next episode. With regards the episodes in Half-Life 2 we are waiting over a year!
Prosecution's Closing Statement
I have clearly demonstrated that Valve is perpetuating a falsehood. Episodic gaming brings little or no benefit to the gamer and a clear statement should be made to them to cease this crime.
I therefore urge you to find the defendant GUILTY. Thank you.
Categories (?)
Poll Questions Read
PasserbywhoplaysHL
What a coincidence! I hadn't forgotten and was writing the defense as we speak and just stopped by to collect some damning exhibits from your site. Hold this space!
(And I'll be filing a complaint with the court and the bar the fact that you didn't properly inform counsel for the defence of the hearing date! 😉
Our Lord and Savior Fluffy The Hamster
To support the Prosecuter's.. prosecution about development times, observe this research. Half-Life 2 was in development for five years (according to http://www.gamespot.com/features/6112889/p-3.html). Released at November 16th, 2004. Episode One was released on June 1st of 2006. If episodes follow this usual development time, thats 2 years per episode which means the episodic trilogy will have 6 years of development time Half-Life 2 it'self took, as said, 5 years of development. This means that the development time will actually be *slower*.
However, this is unfair since the development time will possibly be faster due to the team's experiance in developing Half-Life 2 and their knowledge of the Source Engine already. This however, doesn't matter since a Half-Life 3 on the same again would be the same, regardless of whether it was episodic or not.
As for the cost. Let's do math.
Current price of Half-Life 2 (according to http://www.halflife2.net/hl2/purchase) is 30 dollars american (not including the special offers). Episode One currently is 15 dollars american. Thus, buying them all one by one as they come out would cost you theoretically 45 dollars american.
At the same time, there is the possibility of getting money off if you purchase all the episodes in a three pack (much like the other special offers). This would theoretically cost less then Half-Life 2, assuming it's price doesn't go down.
I will defend the.. defense on the response to criticisms. What about, say, if there was a large amount of players saying that they'd like Barney to practice Krav Maga on a squad of Zombies wearing Superman t-shirts. Not something you can easily put into a patch. So, Episode Two might feature Barney putting the physical smackdown on various alien species as a response to those criticisms.
The prosecution should check his mailbox. And someone should fix the bug with the forum login not working on the main site and vice versa leading to all these anonymous comments. The above is probably Fluffy – not me.
Passerby (acting counsel for the defence)
Honourable members of the court, ladies and gentlemen of the jury,
The counsel for the prosecution has attempted to paint you a picture in which innocent, hardworking gamers are being cheated out of their rightful entertainment by a bunch of lazy, greedy, corporate development houses. What a heart-stirring tale of underdog oppression and woe!
However, do not be misled by this tear-jerking attempt to gain your undeserved sympathy. I put it to you that the very opposite is the case: game developers are working harder than ever before to deliver a quality experience that is entertaining, immersive and fresh. What you have heard, ladies and gentlemen, are the whining complaints of a spoilt consumer with unfair expectations.
Before going into this in greater depth however, I will first refute the prosecution's arguments one by one.
1. Faster release times are a red herring.
The prosecution appears to be confused. Initially, the prosecution appears to complain that game development time has been increasing over the years, yet he then goes on too admonish the industry for wanting to make a quick buck.
It must be either the one or the other: either one believes game development takes too long (in which case one should welcome episodic content), or one should be prepared to wait. The fact that episodic content can deliver games faster, cannot of itself be held against it, surely? That would be like accusing a paperback novel of having a soft spine.
How long does it take to make a game anyway? The truth is, as any honest developer will tell you, "as long as it takes". The great releases we all know and loved were delayed many times for this reason, and that's probably why they were so great. Whether or not the game is episodic is beside the point.
2. Ability to respond to players" criticism is either already present in legacy systems or is undesirable in any case
Again, it is unclear what the prosecution wants. On the one hand prosecution appears to see the ability to update and patch games as a benefit and a pretty straight-forward practice; on the other hand it questions whether such patches might be a good idea. This is again, utterly beside the point with respect as to whether or not gaming is episodic.
It also appears that this confusion on behalf of the prosecution has caused him to overlook the fact that the prime strength of episodic gaming's ability to respond to gamers" criticisms, lies in the aspects of character and storyline. Patches are generally used for technical or gameplay updates (making the player a little stronger or weaker, modifying weapons, baddies), but Episodic gaming means that developers can pay more attention to a particular character's role in the story if it becomes clear that gamers particularly like that character. The classic exhibit here is Alyx in Episode 1, and of course Dog too.
3. The price for the consumer is disproportionately high
This is where the prosecution shows itself at its worst, and the outlines of the spoilt child become most apparent. Let us first compare a few prices:
Average price of a cinema ticket US$15 (90 minutes movie)
Average price of a dinner for two in inexpensive restaurant US$50 (two courses)
Average price of a CD of popular music US$12 (75 minutes of music)
Average price of a seat at the opera US$175 (3 hour opera including interval)
And the prosecution wishes to tell you that US$20 for four hours of intense, immersive, story-driven, kick-ass entertainment is a bad deal?!
Making a good game requires a big team of highly-educated, talented people to work many, many hours. Again we see the spoilt child raise its ugly head from behind the prosecution's argument.
Furthermore, it may well be the case that Half-Life was 12 hours long, maybe Doom II was even 20. This however is utterly beside the point. In the old days, when graphics were poor and AI quality was low, developers compensated by providing quantity instead. Unfortunately, as a result, large sections of these games were mainly filler and often painstakingly boring.
The counsel for the prosecution himself has on several occasions publicly complained of this fact:
[Exhibit 2:
/posts/can-i-skip-the-boring-driving-parts/]
/posts/over-used-features/]
But the most telling way to illustrate this point is by the simple words:
"On a Rail"
Those members of the jury who are true-born gamers will need to hear no more.
4. Lower start-up costs for the developer have not yet made themselves apparent in a sudden increase in new games
The prosecution should be more patient. Rome was not built in a day. The argument is utterly beside the point as to whether or not episodic gaming is a good thing.
Episodic gaming means stronger story telling
Honourable members of the court, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I shall now turn to the prosecution's remarks on storytelling and game mechanics, where again we shall see confusion and a misplaced sense of entitlement on behalf of the prosecution.
Let us first consider the question of "the story" in some popular FPS. If one was in an uncharitable mood, one might summarise the plot of a few popular FPS as follows:
Doom: A portal from hell has opened and you have to shoot all the demons
Half-life 1: A portal from hell has opened and you have to shoot all the demons and the soldiers who have come to shoot the demons too.
Half-life 2: The portal from hell is still open and there are still plenty of demons and soldiers to shoot.
The above, of course, would only be true if technology and creativity hadn't developed to allow better and different means of in-game storytelling. It is only understandable that as the intensity and quality of the storytelling increases, that the overall length of the experience is somewhat reduced. Again, it is a matter of getting rid of boring filler and offering the gamer and experience that is unique and fresh in every moment. Nobody would seriously summarize Episode 1 with its intensive plot and the characters as "Yup, it's still open, still more demons", would they?
Again, the prosecution is unreasonable in its demands. Of course we would all like an epic episodic frag-opera that released itself continuously in 2 hour episodes every evening, but for the time being, we're going to have to wait. Diddums.
Closing Statement for the Defence
The constraints and focus of episodic gaming have given us more detailed storytelling and strong, well-developed characters like Alyx and Dog. The price is more than reasonable when compared to other forms of entertainment. Everyone wishes that games would be released faster, but unfortunately games take time and money to make. The prosecution is acting like a big baby and the defendant is most surely innocent of all charges. I rest my case.
Dusty_Lions
31st August 2010 at 12:29 pm
I have to agree with most of this..Ep1 being only four hours? That is a ripoff. I'll still wind up buying them. But only because of the mods available for them..
Zockopa
Me thinks that creating an episode now with
far less than 10 hours playtime takes more time
to produce than a full missiondisc with more
than double the playtime a couple years ago.
Why ? I cant imagine another reason than making
more bucks per hour playtime. Guilty
Skul
You say patches can be used to better the game? How can it? You can't put major gameplay changes into a patch or update. Take this example:
In Episode One, you were originally going to have the Gravity Gun for a longer period of time. This is explained in the Commentary track. Testers said they wanted to have weapons instead of running around with the Gravity Gun. They couldn't suddenly have you pick up the Pistol and Shotgun after an update. Like one poster said, patches/updates are only used to correct technical errors. Some major gameplay features may require entire maps to be rebuilt, which would result in a jarring effect for those who have played through that map previously.
Another example is the very beginning: Again, the Commentary tells you that the intro was more focused on special effects than storytelling. Testers said they thought it was cool, but didn't really have any idea what was supposed to be happening. VALVe then tweaked it so they could have a middle ground between storytelling and the psychedelic look they were shooting for. If they released the intro they first had, then changed it to the one they have now, when playing through it again, I'd be wondering it was the same game I was playing as last time.
About the cost: You're making it sound like you have to shell out the total cost of all the games at once. No, it's a small amount every so often. I'm sure that in the time it takes for the release of each Episode, you can scrounge up a few bucks for the game…?
Also, Zockopa, how can they make money off of something they haven't released, yet? Your wording is pretty confusing and it makes it sound like you're accusing VALVe of somehow managing to get money off you by simply developing the game. I'm pretty sure that they're spending more money than they are making while producing games.
andyb
I have some serious issues with comments here and I will post this weekend once I get it in order.
a couple are:
Is Valve irresponsible? yes
Is valve controlling your game: yes
Can valve be held accountable? debatable
Can you play your game when you want: NO
Are Episodes the way to go? NO
Are episodes frequent? NO
Other beef's for or against? YES
MMAN
Defense: "On a Rail"
Picking out On a Rail is helping your case how? It wasn't the slightest bit filler: lots of big (multi-way) shootouts, several exploration opportunities, and cool set pieces like the rocket launch. It also helped that it was around shorter, more linear chapters and therefore varied the pace a little.
Anyway, I choose "not guilty" simply because episodic content is too new for any sort of judgement yet (of course the first uses of it are not going to show its advantages much; a lot of new ideas take a while to refine), so I'd rather just give it a chance.
21st January 2007 at 4:55 am
In rejoinder the counsel for the defence withdraws its exhibit "On A Rail", having been convinced by MMAN's stirring evocation of its merrits.
The defence does however, wish to file a new exhibit in its place, which even better demonstrates the use of filler in old-fashioned, non-episodic games:
"Jumping Puzzles"
I can't disagree there 😉 .
MrHappy
22nd January 2007 at 4:22 am
Original paid price for Half-life 2: $60 USD
Original combined prices of Episodes 1 through 3: $60 USD
Claiming that it's a ripoff: Priceless
You have to realize they're working on Episodes 1 and 2 at the same time as well as preliminary Half-Life 3 stuff. Hell, for all we know the HL3 story rough is finalized and production is in full swing.
The point of the Episodes is to give people something substantial to chew on while they wait, rather than just some interviews that say basically "Yeah, we're working on it and it's going to be great."
The episdodes: 1. Further the story 2. Take less time to produce 3. Provide a playground for new technology 4. Extend the development cycle for Half-Life 3 allowing for a longer, better game then you can possibly imagine.
Another way you can look at it is as "webisodes" like Battlestar Gallactica and Jericho. Half-Life 1, 2, and 3 are the seasons and the Episodes (which are going to be between 3 & 4 and 4 & 5 as well) are webisodes to hold interest and give more to the player in terms of story, plot, and detail that only the most hardcore fan will see and understand.
Oh, and maybe Episodic content hasn't caught on enough for people to put money into it yet, but just look at MINERVA and CR.
Besides, SiN failed because everyone on the team quit.
4&8 ? Where did that number come from?Last I heard episode 3 will be the final HL.Unless they change thier minds and make a 3 or 4 full game but last I heard episode 3 is the end.
22nd January 2007 at 10:21 am
you gotts read between the lines, here's a half-remembered quote from Gabe Newell from a really random source that I don't remember:
Q: Is Episode 3 the end of the Half-life saga?
A: Haha we have big plans.
And then there's Lombardi:
"The episodes are like HL 3 man, and like, its like the culmination of the story arc brother but that doesnt mean its the end of HL dude, or does it? [evil laugh]"
I just hope I'm not wrong, don't want to get eBeaten
a. the episodes constiutute an entire game, therefore they are like "half-life 3′, but obviously not called Half-LIfe 3.
b. there will be more games after the episodes
c. the episodes are not the end of hl, theyre not that stupid
d. the naming convention HL2:EP1 etc. and the end of the episodes means that the next game after EP3 will either be Half-Life 3 or something stupid and Alien series like, like Half-Lifes or Half-Life: resurection
e. VALVe is trying to make episodic content popular. if they find they have success with it then they are 99% likely to continue the format through the next series of games, i.e. HL3:EP1 and so on.
f. I work at VALVe
errr, I mean I wish I worked at valve
Here's an interesting interview, Johnson Walker and Lombardi even get a couple of words in edgewise!
http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=65345&page=2
One cool thing in here is the possibility of an HL movie. They've looked at outside scripts, tried hiring a writer, and it was all uninspired crap. Basically they said they'd do it if there was a really good script and director and if they got paid enough. It also goes to the naming conventions, they were thinking about calling the episodes HL3:EP# but didnt. For no reason. Whatever.
Here's something that get's down to my point:
http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Story/200603/N06.0324.2249.59492.htm
Turns out Gabe likes Battlestar, yay!
Anyway here's a quote:
The big guy: I assume at some point we're going to say, and our fans are going to say, "That was really great for awhile, but now we want the big one." I think that we're having the option now of having the same choices of — tv show, tv show, tv show, movie. How do you make that decision? Fans like them both. But, some things you want to do with a movie-like piece, and some things work better as individual episodes.
Anyway, as far as I can see, all roads lead to HL3!
PlanetPhillip
you gotts read between the lines
separating the point about whether Half-Life 3 is the last of the series, I thought Valve made it clear that Half-Life 3 was replaced by episodes 1,2 and 3.
Darth Marsden
22nd January 2007 at 1:26 pm
Episodic gaming can work, you just have to know what type of games you make with it.
Take the new Sam & Max games. I love 'em, and so do many other people. They work wonderfully, and for all the reasons you gave.
They've been released one a month so far, they've tweaked certain aspects in the second epiosde based on people's comments about the first, they cost a lot less then a full game and they're cheaper to make.
But that said, it works because Sam & Max is an adventure game. If it were any other type of game, I really do doubt it would work. I'm merly pointing out that Episodic gaming as a concept is not flawed. Merely that it's been badly implemented by most people who use it. Valve being one of them. I vote Guilty.
Also – whatever happened to SiN Episodes? I enjoyed that!
Forgot the question about SiN – reading the above comments, I can see it's already been answered.
23rd January 2007 at 3:40 am
[quote post="3061″]you gotts read between the lines
separating the point about whether Half-Life 3 is the last of the series, I thought Valve made it clear that Half-Life 3 was replaced by episodes 1,2 and 3.[/quote]
Yeah, see what they're saying is that Episodes 1 2 and 3 constitute a full game, which is Half-Life 3. They are called HL2:EP# because Episode 3 will be the end of the HL2 episode arc. However, they also say that the episodes will lay the foundation for larger story arcs, just as HL1 layed the foundation for HL2, even though it is essentially a seperate story arc.
So we know that the story continues which means there will be another game after Episode 3. Now, the way I see it it cannot be called HL2:EP4 because they sayed there will be only 3 episodes and because it will start a new story arc that is essentially different from HL2.
Now, another reason why they say that the episodes constitute HL3 is marketing. You are more likely to buy all three episodes if you think they constitute a whole game which add up in price and that is the sequel to HL2, rather than being expansion packs for HL2 as the Gearbox games were. (I know tis hard to believe but there are people that have played HL1, and 2 but not BS or OpFor!!)
Newell's quote about BSG and the episode episode episode movie episode episode move etc. format also tell us they are planning a stand-alone "full" game to come after the Episodes.
Now, HL2:EP1-3 may constitute "a Half-Life 3 game" but do you really think they are going to call whatever "full" game that comes after the episodes Half-Life 4 ?
I don't. One, it makes no sense as there is no game officially called Half-Life 3. Two, it may confuse people new to the series.
They will most likely call it "Half-Life 3" as it is continuous with their extablished numbering scheme.
They may also call it something like "Half-Lifes" or "Half-Life: Resurrection" in a way akin to the Alien sereis to stay consistent with their statement that the episodes ARE HL3, but I think that is unlikely seeing as how they have established a numbering scheme.
Also, VALVe likes Episodic content. So it may be HL3:EP1-3 that constitute "a Half-Life 4 game" however this is part is a complete guess, and personally I would prefer to see HL3, then HL3:EP1-3. But this parts my hopes.
Anyway, I think we all realize (I know you do Phillip) that they are not going to kill a series that started with two games that both won multiple "Best game ever made" awards. They love money AND their fans.
Old Scratch
I voted guilty, and I'll tell you why:
1) 6 years to make a sequel? That's buggy?
2) 2 years to release "episodes" that are buggy and outstrip the hardware 90% of the gamers out there use (because not everyone is rich enough to change hardware every 6 months).
3) Steam, which is not only buggy but prevents the user from playing the game in offline mode more often than not.
4) Cost. Every post I've seen so far has the number way off. For one, average movie prices in the US outside of El Lay or NYC are around $7-$10 per person, half that during the day. HL2, when released, was nearly $60 in WAL-MART; the price has since fallen, but the super-duper-combo package is still nearly $60. Retail cost of EP1 is $15, but to get it online (which is problematic for those of us without highspeed connections) is still $20. And if the pricing of the next episodes fall in line with EP1, we're looking at a minimum of $30 and a potential maximum (including inflation) of $50-$60 for the next two. And the kicker is that the "episodic" content isn't really worth more than $10 per episode. And I have to agree with Philip, three short episodes separated by 2 or 3 years really ruin the experience. Once you get them and can run thru them all in one shot, it's nice; but waiting that long is like waiting 2 years for the next Battlestar Galactica episode, you forget way too much, and if Valve is true to form, they've made the new stuff for hardware that didn't exist when you got the game, and there we go with the po" folk gettin" screwed again.
5) Restrictive/impossible DRM: part of Steam, but still valid, because it kills a major portion of gamers, those that don't have highspeed internet access. If the game works well, it doens't need constant "updates" and "patches"–we should be allowed to turn them off if we wish; we should also be allowed to run the game in SP mode without any form of internet connection at all. DOOM3 did it, why can't Valve/HLx??
Conclusion: Valve is making very questionable decisions in how they made, marketed, and maintain the game. It's just one step away from "subscription-based computing", where they charge you per play or per hour or per minute. They aready break Steam and the games when they update them; they already make playing in SP offline mode nearly impossible; and they are overcharging for content that is, at best, no better than a decent mod (and, if compared to Leon's CtA mod, pretty damned lacking).
So, I say to you, the jury: Find them GUILTY. And off with their heads!!
Ok, as fun and pretty as CtoA is it has no story, no variety, and is basically not….nevermind. I like it so I dont want to say bad things.
The only mod that comes close to what your talking about is MINERVA.
As for the price thing, ep2 will be available standalone for 20$ on steam probably. But, guess what the black box is…40$ (USD) uproar? outrage? NO!!! GREAT DEAL!!! because you also get Portal which is a full fledged game, as well as TF2 which is the sequel to the best online multiplayer game ever made.
The Orange box is 60$ GOOD DEAL. its hot HL2 (originally 60$) EP1 (originally 20$) plus the black box contents!!!! GREAT DEAL.
And why would you buy a game on steam? convenience. but, it takes forever to download so go to the friken store, better price, quicker install time. the extra 5$ (OMG) is for the convenience of installing a game while you do something else and dont have to go anywhere to buy it. PLUS if you ruin your disc, YOU DONT HAVE TO BUY A NEW COPY id say the whole five dollars is worth it.
True DRM is essentially illegal, however there are legal loopholes the media industry has created to allow it so, their well within their right. I dont agree with it but its their right.
STEAM, buggy? whatever. its an essentially new concept (yeah, I know, its a few years old) but EVERY OTHER TECHNOLOGY generally has a decade or more until its almost perfect. STEAM doesnt bug up nearly as much as people whine about it bugging up so whatever.
6 years to developer the game? in a way untrue. it took six years to write an entirely new engine from scratch + develop totally new facial animation technologies from scratch + all pre-production designs (concept art, story, etc.) + build a game. you obviously have no idea how much effort it takes to do these things. besides, you were only AWARE of its development for a year and a half so whatever AND they completely redesigned the story and game at least once, plus they had to sustain the pile of crap called counter strike.
EVERY SINGLE PIECE OF SOFTWARE, GAME OR NOT, HAS BUGS. HL2 and EP1 are NOT as buggy as people make them out to be. reason dictates they should be MORE buggy because games are extremely complicated pieces of software as WELL AS art.
have you ever looked at the results of the VALVe hardware survey? guess not because youd know that your second statement is simply WRONG
did you know that VALVe poured almost all of their HL1 profit (if not all, + GABE's own money which he was willing to do but they havent said if it happened) into developing steam, hl2, crappy-strike, tf2, dod, and everything else all at once! and people say their money hungry…….
VALVe has done nothing wrong.
What if your gaming PC is not connected to the internets? I'm a wee bit screwed, aren't I?
(Before anyone asks – I have an external hard drive full of mods and other assorted crap)
man that sucks, I dont know I've never been in that position but I can usually get on my games when internet is temporarily down. afaik just gotta have connected once, and all you need to do that is an aol disc that you can subsequently burn with delight.
maybe the bugs arent exaggerated, ive just never had a problem that wasnt really easily fixed (except once)
Grey Acumen
I can understand the reasoning why people are against Episodic releases, but I do have to respond with one very basic argument defending episodic gaming: If it hadn't been for Orange Box, and the episodes, and being able to gift HL2 & Ep1 to friends, I would not have gotten into the Half Life series. I might not even have gotten Portal.
I like to do analogies, and in this case, my analogy is Half Life is like a Train. Episodic development is like putting more stops for people to get on at. Of course it's not as convenient for the people already on the train, but it's a minor inconvenience, and for the people who haven't gotten on yet it's a HUGE benefit.
Ultimately, as long as Valve releases GOOD games with GOOD stories, I'll play them. I don't care whether they're episodic or not.
I think the Episodic system works pretty good, it allows for a quicker game to fill a gap in the story or to expand the story at a lower price.
Also just a note,
Calling them "Half Life 2: Episode X" is incorrect, Valve states that they should really be refereed to by "Half Life 3: Episode X"
I believe said that they "wished" they had called them "Half Life 3: Episode X".
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Q: bash: gitolite: command not found I am trying to make a new branch in Gitlab by using Gitolite. I complete the installation steps. when i come across "setting up gitolite" section i have a trouble. I followed this link.
When i run

            gitolite setup -pk alice.pub

command i got "bash: gitolite: command not found" error message. I don't know what is the problem.. Any one please help me.

A: This step comes after the Gitolite installation, which supposes you have chosen one of three possibilities:

*

*Keep the sources anywhere and use the full path to run the gitolite command.

*Keep the sources anywhere and symlink just the gitolite program to some directory on your $PATH.

*Copy the sources somewhere and use that path to run the gitolite command.

So make sure gitolite is in your PATH, and that command will work.
I prefer a local installation of gitolite (in a local directory, as opposed to /usr/local, which requires root privileges.).
See, for illustration, "install_or_update_gitolite.sh"
"${github}/install" -to "${gtl}/bin" # Note: "${gtl}/bin" is in my $PATH
GITOLITE_HTTP_HOME= gitolite setup -pk "${H}/.ssh/gitoliteadm.pub"

Note that for gitolite setup to properly work, you might want to set GITOLITE_HTTP_HOME to an empty string first.

A: As I also faced the same problem, I found the solution(s) as below.
First way is ...,
Open your terminal and key in below code
$ PATH=$PATH:~/bin

It is because the value of $PATH variable is point to incorrected path.
So I just modify this variable.
To be more detail click here.
Second way is ...,
Edit .bashrc file going to the end and insert below line.
PATH=/home/git/bin:$PATH

To be more detail click here.

A: On debian, there is no  /usr/bin/gitolite
Linux debian-srv 3.2.0-4-amd64 #1 SMP Debian 3.2.60-1+deb7u3 x86_64 GNU/Linux ls: cannot access /home/gitolite/bin: No such file or directory
ls: cannot access /usr/bin/gito*: No such file or directory

Here installing gitolite3 helped:
apt-get install gitolite3
root@debian-srv:# which gitolite
/usr/bin/gitolite

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Action on gun violence is a respect life issue in the eyes of some
A woman holds a sign advocating for gun control while marching with Moms Demand Action at the gay pride parade in San Francisco June 26. In the first 180 days of 2016, there have been 163 mass shootings in the United States, according to data gathered by the Washington-based nonprofit Gun Violence Archive. CNS photo/Elijah Nouvelage, Reuters
By Dennis Sadowski, Catholic News Service
WASHINGTON – In the first 181 days of 2016, there have been 163 mass shootings in the United States, data gathered by the Washington-based nonprofit Gun Violence Archive show.
Those mass shootings, defined as incidents in which four or more people are wounded or killed, led to 232 deaths and 643 injuries.
Not all such incidents make headlines – except locally. Only occasionally do they reach the scale of the June 12 massacre at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in which a lone gunmen armed with high-capacity, quick-reload weapons gunned down 99 people, killing 49.
Clergy, gun control advocates and other observers say though that gun violence of any type – whether characterized as mass shootings or not – is destroying the soul of the country.
But solutions have been hard to reach.
"No one has answers. We are all, every one of us, affected by the problem. No one has the right answer," said Stephen E. Sussman, associate professor of public administration at Dominican-run Barry University in Miami.
At least four bishops recently addressed gun violence. Their concern: U.S. society has a moral responsibility to enact gun control measures to protect society. Most importantly, they maintain, gun violence is a respect-for-life issue and their pleas for action are not rooted in politics.
In total, they have called for banning civilian access to military-style weapons, implementing background checks before gun purchases and prohibiting people on the federal no-fly list from obtaining a firearm.
"It is time for us as a nation to require at least as much from those purchasing guns as we expect from those making application for a driver's license. Public safety must always come first," Bishop David A. Zubik of Pittsburgh said in a June 24 statement.
He told Catholic News Service three days later that his concern is rooted in long-standing Catholic teaching.
"It's respect for human life," he said. "We see so many different incidents of this type of violence that are occurring. And also that we take a look at that as a society. We're becoming numb to these kinds of incidents."
Bishop Kevin J. Farrell of Dallas has been particularly outspoken, having forcefully addressed the issue twice on the diocesan blog this year. His stance has received harsh criticism from gun rights backers. He told CNS that he was hardly offended because his concern extends to the protection of human life.
"We bear a big moral responsibility for all of this, and the deaths of those children (in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012) especially, and the deaths of those young people who were in that night club in Orlando. That blood is on our hands and our leaders need to come to terms with this," Bishop Farrell said.
Archbishop Blase J. Cupich of Chicago and Bishop Dennis J. Sullivan of Camden, New Jersey, also issued recent statements, imploring political leaders to implement a ban on assault weapons. Archbishop Cupich's concern stems from the high rate of gun violence in his city, while Bishop Sullivan directly addressed the Orlando attack.
"The time for waiting is over," Bishop Sullivan said in a June 23 posting on the diocesan website. "It was over after Virginia Tech, after Charleston, after Sandy Hook, after San Bernardino and again now. How is it possible that these violent weapons can be purchased with such ease by people who have previously demonstrated signs of being a danger to others? And just as importantly, should these weapons be so easily and quickly purchased by anyone?"
Patricia McGuire, president of Trinity Washington University, in an interview with Catholic News Service after the Orlando shootings, said it was time for the entire church, led by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, to insist that meaningful gun control measures be adopted.
"The church does not hesitate to speak where it feels that political action will protect life. I think we should be vigorous on this, starting with banning the sale of assault rifles, requiring background checks. That seems like such a minimal step to protect life and to call people to action," McGuire said.
Gun rights organizations, such as the National Rifle Association, argue that any limit on acquiring firearms violates the Second Amendment. Their argument is based on the idea that responsible and trained gun owners could more readily disarm an assailant meaning to inflict harm on innocent people in public places.
So far, that argument has held sway in Congress. For example, a bipartisan-backed bill introduced June 21 by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, would ban anyone on federal watch lists from obtaining firearms.
Within 48 hours, however, the Senate again voted not to act, leaving the bill in legal limbo -- not tabled, but without the 60 votes necessary to move forward under the chamber's rules to move forward. The vote was 52 to 46.
The House adjourned June 23 without enacting any legislation despite a 24-hour sit-in by Democrats to call for a vote on gun control measures.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court determined in a 6-2 vote that a domestic violence assault committed "recklessly" is a misdemeanor, triggering a federal law that bans gun ownership. The Lautenberg Amendment, adopted by Congress in 1996, was enacted to prevent future acts of domestic violence by a person previously convicted of such an offense.
Brett Wilmot, associate director of Villanova University's Ethics Program, suggested in an email to CNS that the country needs "to change the way we think about reducing the presence and availability of guns in our communities." He called for reframing the arguments from one focusing on "the loss of individual rights and liberties or as evidence of our subordination and servility in the face of an oppressive government or as an increased threat of our falling victim to crime."
"We need narratives that celebrate the social, cultural, political, health and security benefits that emerge in the absence of these weapons, or at least in the absence of many or most of them, particularly those with the greatest capacity to kill and maim," said Wilmot.
Barry University's Sussman, a leader in the South Florida Jewish community, put it even more simply, saying it's time to put politics aside.
"We need to bring everyone together (to find an answer)," he said. "We're not Republicans. We're not Democrats. We're not independents. We're all Americans."
Orlando shooting
Editorial: No place for guns
Florida Catholic school's prayer service marks one year since MSD high school shooting
Brazil's new firearm decree worries poor neighbourhood in Sao Paulo
Shooting in cathedral leaves five dead, four injured in Brazil
Shooting victim at Catholic supply store recalled as 'lovely soul'
More in this category: « Pope Francis prays for peace following Turkey terrorist attack	U.S. bishops speak out against attack in Turkey »


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Q: Xbox 360 charger to charge Xbox One controller I have a couple of questions.

*

*I have Insignia XBox 360 controller charger (dual slot one); and I sold my XBox 360 and have two ONE- controllers. Is there an adapter to use that docking station to charge the device?

*Will XBox 360 rechargeable battery fit XBox one? I'm 99% sure it won't but, I don't have the 360's rechargeable battery on hand to test it out myself.
Thanks.

A: If you mean a rechargeable battery pack like this - no that won't fit the Xbox Ones controller.  The Xbox One controllers do not have a separate piece like the Xbox 360 controllers did that you'd insert the batteries into or in the case of a rechargeable pack, they do not make use of the gold pins like the 360 controllers do.  The batteries on an Xbox One controller are more inline with the controller - making the back of it flat unlike the 360s.
If you get an Xbox One rechargeable battery pack, it will come with a micro-USB cable to use for it (the Xbox One controllers have a micro-USB socket at the top of them which can be used to charge such battery pack or to power the controller/plug into a computer), but otherwise, they are fairly cheap and common to find anyway - should you go with a third-party option that does not include one.  There likely is not an adapter for the docking station you already have (its too specific of an adapter for manufactures to make and therefore, its not in anyone's interest to create such an adapter).  Insignia has instead opted to make another charger station for the Xbox One.


I want to get a blog going for this website where viewers can leave comments. I am still learning how to do this.
In the meantime I will copy some of the emails I receive and my responses.
Friday night I neglected to tell you how much I appreciated your book. You raise so many interesting and important questions and speculations. People should read it. It gets you thinking of just what comes next - not that I expect to find out. When was the bottle neck?
Any mutations to carry us through?
Glad the book touched a nerve. Keep looking at what is happening. Now to your questions.
"Bottle-neck" is a term used by some to describe a situation in genealogy where the number of individuals in a tribe/species becomes so few that the genetic traits of those individuals become dominate. Most of the descendents of that tribe exhibit the genetic traits of those who survived the bottle-neck. Very often this is the result of some kind of geographical separation of the group from the main body of the species.
Darwin noticed this condition in his studies of the finches on the Galapagos Islands. Studies indicate that the Sami people in the north of Scandinavia and Russia exhibit the characteristics of a limited selection of genes and are thought to have gone through a genetic bottleneck about the time of the Black Death plague when the population was reduced by over 90%. The Ashkenazi Jews apparently went through a bottle-neck about 2,500 years ago and did not intermix with the other Jews to any great extent after that. Members of that group are noted for their accomplishments and include Einstein, Freud, Gershwin, and von Neumann.
In my book I postulate a group of survivors numbering maybe 25 in the 22nd century who are traveling from Oregon to Hudson Bay. They are dominated by the Hardy clan who all had the genetic traits of rational thought, red hair and freckles, and a tail. With the inbreeding that would result, the traits become even stronger and as their tribe reaches northern Canada and grows, most of their descendants exhibit those traits.
Some have asked why those traits all happened at the same time. The way our DNA is built, very often a mutation that affects one trait also affects some other unrelated trait. So taking author privileges, I determined that tails, red hair, and rational thought could all be tied into the same mutation.
Editorial note: One mutation the human species certainly needs it is to begin to think rationally and realistically about our situation. We must understand the true meaning of risk. I see so much of our society in a state of denial of the problems we face and enmeshed in unrealistic hope. I spent years trying to explain to the people in the Central US that they should be worried about the gigantic fault under the Mississippi, but what I found was a complete rejection that there may be some kind of risk. I do not know how to induce such a mutation. I hope it can be trained into people's minds.


FAQ: How do I download Adobe Digital Editions or the Bluefire Reader?
Adobe Digital Editions is a free program that allows you to load the entire ebook for viewing and transfer it to a device. If you want to download to an iPad (or Apple device) you will want to download the Bluefire Reader application or the database specific application.
Click here for additional information about how to download Adobe Digital Editions or the Bluefire reader or check out the videos below.


Have you added IT Fun on Twitter yet? Why not? Too cool for Twitter? If you've found something you think other IT pros will appreciate, send an e-mail to cpaoli@1105media.com so we can include it in next week's edition.
If You Do This in an E-mail… (TheOatmeal.com) - Any of these offenses are grounds for automatic deletion.
iPhone Umbilical Chord Charger (IntoMobile.com) – This is what nightmares are made of.
Garth Marenghi's Darkplace (YouTube.com) – Presented by the guys who brought you The IT Crowd. Do watch. Now.


What an exciting weekend here at Kazwear Swimwear.
We participated in two BIG events along the coast of Lake Huron.
Christmas came early to Grand Bend and Bayfield and our loyal customers took advantage of some AMAZING deals.
Whiteoaks Mall location has immediate openings for both the Assistant Manager and Team Leader positions. See required qualifications on the careers page.
Kazwear Swimwear is excited to announce an exciting promotion in our year round stores!
BUY TWO OR MORE ITEMS AND RECEIVE 50% OFF YOUR PURCHASE!
HURRY IN NOW FOR BEST SELECTION, THESE DEALS WON'T LAST LONG!
There are also great deals to be had in our seasonal locations located along the coasts of Lake Huron and Lake Erie so be sure to swing by to revamp your cruise wardrobe!


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Q: FInding a better method for determining y intercept in r after weibull fit I have included a sample code of what exactly i want to get out, this is functional, but i suspect theres a much better method of determining when my curve crosses the y threshold, any help would be much appreciated.
library("MASS")
suppressMessages(library("drc"))

Konc <- c(0.42, 0.30, 0.24, 0.21, 0.18, 0.15, 0.12, 0.09, 0.06, 0.00)
Response <- c(0.231, 0.299, 0.520, 0.720, 0.874, 0.917, 0.950, 0.953, 0.960, 0.965)
Response.df = data.frame(Response,Konc)

plot(Konc,Response, type="o", pch=20, col="black",axes=FALSE, xlim=c(0.0,0.5),ylim=c(0,1),
xlab="Konc",ylab="Response", main="Visualization")
axis(1, pos=0)
axis(2, pos=0)
abline(h=0.33, lty=2)

df.m1 <- drm(Response.df, fct = W2.4())
plot(df.m1, add = TRUE, type = "none", col ="black", lty=2)

summary(df.m1)

b <- df.m1$coef[1]
    c <- df.m1$coef[2]
d <- df.m1$coef[3]
    e <- df.m1$coef[4]
Weibull <- function(x){ c + (d-c) * (1 - exp(- exp(b*(log(x)-log(e)))))}
curve(Weibull,col="red", add=TRUE)

Intersection <- optimize(function(x) abs(0.33-Weibull(x)), c(.0,.50))$minimum
Intersection
abline(v=Intersection, lty=2, col="red")

Another solution than the one Roland provided
Intersection <- 0.33
g <- function(x) Intersection - Weibull(x)
uniroot(g,c(0,1))$root
[1] 0.2929989

A: Pencil and paper is your friend for this:
y0 <- 0.33
x0 <- unname(e*(-log(1-(y0-c)/(d-c)))^(1/b))
#[1] 0.2929993

Weibull(x0)
#c:(Intercept)
#         0.33


Do you remember the Ikea doll bed I redid for Elle for Christmas?
It was a fun easy little project and I made it 2 gifts in one by pre-cutting all the squares to make a doll quilt that would be a first sewing project for my 7 year old. After laying out the pattern and lots of straight stitches sewing block after block into row after row, we pieced the quilt top together, backed it, quilted it, and bound it.
Bedding befitting of any girly girl... even the ones whose elbows don't bend and hair is shinier than humanly possible.
Hello! I'm thinking of doing a similar project for Christmas. How big did the finished quilt end up being?


Rankings of cities measuring "livability" or "quality of life" are a staple of the Internet. Livability, however, is very much in the eye of the beholder.
Areavibes.com provides a typical such livability metric. Cities are rated by a combination of factors – proximity to amenities, cost of living, crime rates, educational facilities, the local labor market, the housing market, and weather.
The AreaVibes metric seems like it would be helpful to an affluent, mid-career professional with a couple of kids in school who is looking to buy a house and put down roots.
This ranking is completely useless to me. I am a somewhat reckless, single 20-something trying to start a career. Buying a house, settling down, and worrying about what school district I live in are completely alien concepts.
I am far more interested in meeting interesting people and experiencing all that life has to offer. To help me decide where I and other similarly inclined members of my generation should live, I have put together a ranking of my own: the Shiftless Millennial City Index (SMCI). This index is based on amount of parkland, number of large music venues per capita, number of bars per capita, how many people are single, access to public transportation, and cost of living. (You can read more about the methodology here).
We can see which cities are the most underrated by AreaVibes by subtracting SMCI rankings from AreaVibes rankings for the 88 cities ranked by AreaVibes with populations of at least 200,000 — the bigger the difference, the more underrated the city. This gives us an idea of some of the places where shiftless millennials should live.
San Francisco scored very well in most of the categories going into the SMCI. SF was below average in only two categories — it has the worst cost of living index of any of the cities we ranked, and it has, somewhat shockingly, a slightly below average number of venues listed on TicketMaster.
San Francisco's low AreaVibes score — and relatively low ranking on our underrated cities list — came as a surprise. I can understand how one could make a metric of city quality that would disfavor the big cities of the Northeast and Midwest – it's easy to hate on Detroit and New York – but San Francisco is just so awesome that the mind boggles that it could be below the median on any ranking system of large cities.
Even though Cleveland is only average on the SMCI, AreaVibes hates the city — Cleveland is the third lowest ranked city in the group. Cleveland's saving graces on the SMCI are its decent public transportation, large number of single people, and low cost of living.
However, a lack of bars, parks, and concert venues limits Cleveland's potential as a destination for the young and reckless.
Abundant parkland, a large number of venues, and plenty of awesome bars like The Bug Jar, along with a low cost of living, help push Rochester up in the SMCI rankings.
Having grown up in Western New York, I'm happy to see Rochester on this list. Over the last decade or so, Rochester has become the cooler version of Buffalo, with a lot of young artists and the like moving there.
St. Louis features better than average public transportation, a large single population, and about 43 Yelp-reviewed bars per 10,000 residents, nearly twice the average of the cities studied.
St. Louis is a bit of an anomaly in that it's the only Southern interior city on the list – all our other underrated cities are coastal or Northern.
An extremely large number of venues and bars overcome mediocre to terrible public transportation and parkland to give Santa Ana a leg up in the SMCI rankings.
I have always assumed that if I moved out west, I would go to the Bay Area, but given this entry and the next, I may have to take a second look at Southern California.
Anaheim has a heroic 104 Yelp-reviewed bars per 10,000 residents, dwarfing any other city studied. Keep drinking, Anaheim!
When I put together the SMCI, I honestly did not expect to see a city in Orange County in the top ten, but Anaheim pleasantly surprises with extremely good scores in the venues and bars indexes.
Miami features better than average public transit and a pretty impressive number of bars. I was surprised to see that only 41.9% of Miami's population has never been married, which is very close to the average for our cities.
With its beautiful beaches, and even more beautiful people, Miami is a natural fit for an aimless 20-something.
Detroit, with its many endemic problems, came in dead last in AreaVibes' rankings, but is a fairly middle of the road city in the SMCI rankings. A full 54.3% of Detroit's population has never been married, and Detroit has a much lower cost of living than most of the cities.
Washington has an amazing public transportation system, nearly twice as much parkland as the average city, an extremely large single population, and a healthy number of bars. It does lack in music venues, however.
The capital, despite having terrible drivers and rude residents, is one of the best places in the country for someone like me to live.
As with some of the other cities on this ranking, a big part of why Anchorage is underrated is based on its low AreaVibes ranking. Anchorage actually features fairly low scores on many of the SMCI sub-indexes, but nearly half of the city is parkland, driving up its score.
If only Jesse Pinkman had vanished his way up to our 10th most underrated city, he could have avoided months of torture and slavery. Alas.
Minneapolis scores fairly well all around in the components of the SMCI, with above average scores in each category except for music venues. Home of the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis is a delightful, if somewhat chilly, destination.
Baltimore is another city that is maligned by AreaVibes, but is not so bad for an aimless 20-something, with its SMCI boosted by good public transportation and a large single population.
I occasionally dream about becoming a detective, falling into disgrace, and then turning into a high school math teacher, in our 8th most underrated city.
New York has everything a shiftless millennial could want. Over half the city's residents use public transportation, and we have, as pictured, some of the most beautiful parks in America. Venues per capita and bars per capita are a little lower than average, but this is mainly due to New York's unparalleled population.
With its excellent public transportation, plentiful parks and bars, and with nearly 57% of the population having never been married, it makes sense that Boston is an ideal habitat for America's 20-somethings.
Oakland scores well across the board in the SMCI sub-indexes, except for having a higher-than-average standard of living.
Oakland has probably always been the most underrated part of the Bay Area, and this is reflected in its place on our list.
Chicago's biggest advantage in the SMCI ranking is its public transit — over a quarter of Chicagoans use the CTA to get around.
Although suffering from fairly horrific crime and gang problems for the last few years, Chicago is still a pretty wonderful city.
My beloved hometown may not be as economically dynamic as it was in its industrial heyday, but it is a great place to live. Buffalo's biggest draws for a shiftless millennial are its numbers of venues and bars per capita, and its very low cost of living.
With Jersey City coming in at first overall on the SMCI list, scoring quite well across all categories, it appears that Walt Hickey might have been dead accurate when he said that everyone who lives in New York City should live in Jersey City instead.
Newark has good scores on most parts of the SMCI, but is somewhat lacking in parkland and bars.
Philadelphia was the second lowest city ranked by AreaVibes, but scored quite well on the SMCI based on its public transportation, large single population, and healthy amount of parkland.
"It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" has amply illustrated the virtues of being a shiftless millennial in our most underrated city.


Capital Gains Tax is payable on any increase in value since acquisition at 33%. The gain is calculated on the difference between the sale price the price of acquisition adjusted by an inflation index.
Irish Inheritance Tax is payable by both resident and non-resident beneficiaries on certain transferred assets including property. There are exemption thresholds depending on the relationship between the donor and the beneficiary. The remaining taxable value in excess of the relevant threshold is taxed at 33%.


Sheffield's former Town Hall and Courthouse is a beautiful historic Grade II listed Victorian building located in the city's ancient Castlegate area. It served as the Town Hall and later as the Law Courts for nearly 200 years and has played a unique and significant role in Sheffield's history until it closed in 1996.
But 20 years of neglect have taken their toll and the building is now in grave danger. The private owners who bought the building in 2004 have neglected it and allowed the exterior and interior to decay. Years of neglect and a now leaking roof are destroying the beautiful and historic interior of this once proud symbol of Sheffield's civic pride.
We cannot stand by and let this happen.
The Friends of the Old Town Hall have a plan to rescue this building and return it to the people of Sheffield. Our vision is to restore the interior and exterior – the wooden panelled historic courtrooms, the judges' chambers, the underground tunnels and cells, the iconic clock tower and architecture – and create a flagship historic building owned and used by Sheffield people.
We have done the groundwork. We have a tested business model for new use, a condition survey, and a properly costed schedule of restoration work. We will set up a community benefit society to finance the restoration and create a community share scheme putting the building back into the hands of Sheffield people.
To do this we need to get it out of the hands of the owners who refuse to talk to us and seem not to care if the building falls down. We need Sheffield City Council to us its powers of compulsory purchase NOW to get the building off the owners so that we can press forward with our restoration plans before the building deteriorates even further. We've been talking to the Council for over a year about compulsory purchase, but the wheels grind slowly – we need action NOW, no more delays.
Please sign our petition to Save Sheffield Old Town Hall before it's too late.
We know what can be done. And we are up for it. Are you?
Remember – when it's gone, it's gone for ever.


There are amazing Corsican products at Casa Nostra Epicerie Fine Corse. The owners are wonderful.
A place full of Corsican flavours. From aperitif to the digestive through amazing specialities and creations of Corsicans!


Originally from the South, Jennifer moved to New York after school and has been inspired by the city ever since. She is passionate about telling stories, especially those involving food and gatherings. She has photographed for many editorial and commercial clients including Martha Stewart Living, Weight Watchers, Ladies Home Journal, Cooking Light, and Real Simple. She has also photographed books for Princeton Architectural Press, Chronicle books and Harper Collins.


text:
Publisher Paul Gaier adds role with Peoria Journal Star
May 2, 2018 at 1:58 PM May 2, 2018 at 11:59 PM
Paul Gaier, president and publisher of the Rockford Register Star and The Journal-Standard, will assume additional duties as the new president and publisher of the Peoria Journal Star, Bradley M. Harmon, Central U.S. president for GateHouse Media, announced Wednesday.
Gaier replaces Ken Mauser who resigned May 1 after 32 years of service to the Peoria community. Gaier will report to Harmon and assume his new role immediately.
Gaier has led the Rockford operation through several years of growth. Under his leadership, the Register Star was named one of 10 newspapers that "Do it Right" by Editor & Publisher magazine in 2017. He has been with GateHouse Media since 2012, when he joined the Peoria Journal Star as director of advertising.
"The executive team in Rockford is very collaborative group of leaders," Gaier said. "I am confident in their ability to best serve our customers when my time is spent with our other interests in Illinois."
Gaier, who had roles with the United Way, the Rockford Area Economic Development Council and Leadership Council in Rockford, plans to be engaged in the Peoria community. "I want to play a role in helping to make Peoria a better place to live," he said.
Last month, Gaier was named president of GateHouse Media's Illinois operations. The company has 33 publications and 14 daily newspapers in the state.
"Paul brings a diverse background, a strong track record for growing businesses, driving community conversation and an overall progressive approach to business that will help us grow our Illinois franchise," Harmon said.
Gaier is a graduate of the University of St Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, with a bachelor's degree in business administration and a minor in marketing.