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I am delighted today to have Rachel Abbott drop by to talk with us.
Rachel Abbott was born just outside Manchester, England.
She became a systems analyst at the age of 21 in the early 1970s, and formed her own software company in the mid 1980s designing computer programmes for education. The company expanded into all forms of interactive media and became extremely successful. The sale of the company in 2000 enabled her to take early retirement and fulfil one of her lifelong ambitions - to buy and restore a property in Italy.
Once there she completely restored a ruined monastery and started a second successful business renting it out for weddings and conferences.
In 2010 she embarked on her third career and wrote her first book
Only the Innocent.
Lizzie: Rachel welcome. You have had two successful businesses' the second of which fulfilled a lifetime ambition, and now a third as a writer. Did you always want to write, or did it come to you later when you took stock of your achievements and thought - so what now?
Rachel: In my working life I had always done a lot of writing. My interactive media business was based around training and education, and we often used drama to convey key points. I was actively involved in creating the scenarios and writing the scripts, and I loved it. However, it never occurred to me that I might write a book until about six years before I sold the business. One evening over dinner a friend asked me what I would do if I retired before I was fifty, and without thinking I said "I'll write a book". Nobody was more surprised than me! As it happens, I didn't retire before I was fifty – but I still kept thinking about that book I was going to write!
Lizzie: The advice so often given to aspiring authors is 'write what you know'. So why a police detective, and not an amateur detective, such as a computer analyst, hotelier or property developer?
Rachel: Strangely I never think of my books as being about a police detective. Much as I love Tom Douglas, he's almost incidental. I write about the victims and the perpetrators of the crimes (which suggests I have an even murkier past, if we are to believe that people write about what they know). The geography of my books is different from a lot of crime novels, which tend to be based around the policeman – his office, his car, his interviews with suspects. My books are based – for the most part - in the home of the protagonists. They are books about relationships that have gone badly wrong, and the terrible things that people are capable of doing to each other – most of which ultimately require the input of a policeman.
Lizzie: Did you always plan to write a series? Sleep Tight is the third outing for DCI Tom Douglas. When you set out to write your first book Only the innocent, did you already have DCI Tom Douglas in mind, and if so was he based on anyone, or did he emerge as you wrote?
Rachel: I never really wanted to have a series. I expected each book to be a stand-alone because of the nature of the stories I hoped to tell. But when somebody is murdered in the first scene of a book – as happened in Only the Innocent – you need a detective, whether you want one or not. I liked Tom, but the readers loved him, so he had to come back. He wasn't based on anybody in particular – but he's my idea of an all round good guy. He can be a bit gruff and direct, and he struggles to deal with the grey areas between right and wrong. He is often conflicted when he knows that technically a crime has been committed, but sometimes the reason for that crime provides a level of justification that Tom finds hard to come to terms with. He struggles with knowing what – as a policeman – he should do, and his own innate sense of right and wrong.
Lizzie: Working as you did in both the computer and leisure/catering industry are the ideas for your books sparked from real events and people you have come across, or do ideas just come to you? Or a mixture of both?
Rachel: The events don't come from my own experience – thank goodness. But the people do. I am a great people watcher, and I've seen the dark side of too many characters over the years. Nobody quite to the extent of Hugo Fletcher in Only the Innocent, of course, but I've been stalked myself by a very intelligent, normal guy who just lost the plot. I've witnessed other bizarre behaviour where people become obsessed with somebody or something, but believe their behaviour to be perfectly rational.
Ideas for the books just come to me, but it's the people within those stories that create the atmosphere, and I suppose I have taken aspects of personalities I have witnessed and just multiplied them many, many times to create my bad guys (or girls).
Lizzie: With Sleep Tight , I found the balance between the characters and the police procedure beautifully balanced. So often where the protagonist is a police detective it mainly about the actions of the police. Was this a conscious decision or did it just work out that way.
Rachel: Thank you for that, and I'm glad it worked out that way. Sleep Tight was a book about obsession – just what I was talking about above, really. So the story had to be focussed on the impact of that obsession on the main characters. The police are a requirement in the story – somebody has to stop something terrible from happening. But the emotions, fear and anger have to come from the characters who are affected by the story. I think this is why I'm often not drawn to standard police procedurals. If everything is seen from the eyes of the detective, it limits the range of emotions. He's not going to be scared for his life, or frightened of going to sleep when somebody is in the house? So my books have to be about the characters – and I try to make the police procedure as interesting as I can, through the character of Tom.
Lizzie: Do you plan your plots before you start writing? And, if so, do your books change during the writing process? So often writers say that the characters take over, resulting in a different ending and sometimes perpetrator. Do your books pan out exactly as you originally planned?
Rachel: I do plan the book, but there are many changes and deviations from the original outline as I write. Sometimes the planned route stops working because suddenly I think 'but he just wouldn't do that' and I have to find a different way through. When I was writing Stranger Child, I had a very clear idea of how the book was going to end. I discussed it with my agent, and sat down to write the final chapter. In spite of a conversation that very morning, the ending that I wrote was entirely different. It rather bizarrely seemed to have a life of its own. It didn't affect the outcome of the crime – the same person was guilty – but it was interesting how clear the character's behaviour had become in my mind, so that I couldn't give them the ending I had planned.
Having said that, unlike some writers, I do think it's essential to know the key points of the story, including the guilty party, before starting to write. Even if things move in slightly different directions as you write, characters have to be consistent. If you start off without knowing who is the perpetrator of the crime, how can their characters develop and how can they be true to themselves?
Lizzie: When embarking on a new book, what area of the book challenges you the most?
Rachel: I start every book thinking 'this is only going to be about 30,000 words', and then when I finish it and it's 120,000 and I have to cut a huge amount, I don't know how it's happened. So I worry at the start that there's not enough to the story – that it's too simple. So the challenge is to create a web of deceit with multiple strands that all come together. One advantage of being an ex systems analysis is that I am an ace flowcharter! And I need to be to ensure that I keep everything on track.
Lizzie: Do you have a favourite part of the writing process?
Rachel: All of it! It's different for each book, but one thing that I always enjoy is getting back my first set of edit notes. Some people think this is the worst part. There are (virtual) red lines through whole sections, or notes such as 'this should all be happening sooner' or 'let's see some more of this character – he's too weak'. It's the 'big issue' edit, and I sit and stare at it, eat a few Jaffa cakes swearing and cursing at my editor, and then start to make the changes and all the pieces begin to slot into place. Suddenly this totally different beast emerges. It's a fantastic experience.
Lizzie: So why self-publishing? It's clear from your background that you must be motivated, clever and positive to have achieved what you have. I am sure that you could have got a publishing deal particularly after the success of Only the Innocent.
Rachel: After Only the Innocent I got an agent. We decided together that it would be worth writing a couple more books to see how they sold before we thought about a publisher. There were several reasons for this. A few successful self-publishers had been picked up by traditional publishers, and not all of these relationships had turned out well, although some did. I felt that I was still learning (and now realise that I always will be), and I wanted to keep improving. I would have no problem with a traditional deal - there are so many advantages – but the timing and the deal haven't been right yet.
Lizzie: You have now relocated to Alderney which features in Sleep Tight. What prompted that move?
Rachel: There were several reasons. We still have a house in Italy, and I'll spend some months there over the summer. It's a truly great place to write. But I actually missed speaking English. As a writer, it's actually quite useful to have intelligent friends who you can have a decent conversation with and stretch your use of language. Even British television – if chosen wisely (which I don't always) helps with vocabulary. In Italy, anything other than Italian tended to be American. I was increasingly finding that I couldn't remember the English words for things like aubergine and courgette, so a British speaking country was a must. We thought about the Channel Islands because after Italy we couldn't face living in the cold north again (although I love visiting), and when I read about Alderney it seemed such a quirky and interesting place that we came for a look. I was bowled over by the place, and it still puts a smile on my face every day.
Lizzie: Your fourth book, Stranger Child, comes out in e-book at the end of February. Can you tell us about this book?
Rachel: It is SO hard to talk about this book without giving away key elements of the story.
The book starts when Caroline Joseph is driving her six-year-old daughter home from a family party. She sees a car slewed across the road ahead and is about to stop when she receives a phone call. The person on the other end is begging Caroline not to stop, so she puts her foot down to get past the car. Sadly the car skids and turns over, and she is killed outright. When the police arrive, there is no sign of another vehicle – but neither is there a little girl in, or anywhere near, the car. She has disappeared without a trace.
Six years later we begin to see the repercussions of the decisions taken that night. The danger that was lurking has never gone away, and one person is seeking revenge for the torment suffered. Tom Douglas is there to help, but in the process he is forced to face some demons of his own.
Lizzie: So what are you working on now? Another DCI Tom Douglas, or are you becoming restless to try something different?
Rachel: My next book will involve Tom again – but as yet I haven't worked out his role. When coming up with ideas, I always start with the victims and the perpetrators. Tom's involvement only comes about as a result of their actions, but as there will undoubtedly be a crime committed at some point, he will be needed. He will probably have a smaller role than in Stranger Child, which had elements that were very personal to Tom. I have worked out most of the story, but it's a psychological thriller on the whole, and we're a long way into the story before a crime is committed. So I have to figure out how and where Tom fits. But he'll be there!
My thanks to Rachel for talking to us. If anyone has any questions for Rachel, we will be delighted to hear from you.
Books Are:
Only the Innocent (2011)
The Back Road (2013)
Sleep Tight (2014)
Stranger Child (2015)
http://www.rachel-abbott.com/
Posted by Lizzie Hayes at 09:09 No comments:
'Sleep Tight' by Rachel Abbott
I have recently finished reading Sleep Tight a taut thriller by Rachel Abbot that I could not put down until I had devoured every page. Below is my review. If you would like to hear more about Rachel, do drop by my blog tomorrow when I have the pleasure of talking to Rachel about her life and writing.
Published by Black Dot Publishing Ltd,
February 2015 (E-book).
Following the disappearance of her beloved husband Dan, Olivia Brookes has now married Robert who entered her life as she was coping with the loss of Dan, and then stood by her when a second tragedy occurred. Now she is calling the police to report her husband Robert and three children have disappeared.
The first six chapters of the book take us through Olivia's panic and fear as the hours pass, and she knows that she has reason to think the worst, as she knows what Robert is capable of, but cannot share these fears with the police. As the investing officer's conduct a routine search of the house for any clues as to where the children could be, they discover that some of the children's clothes are missing. But Olivia insists that Robert just took the children out for pizza. However, Inspector Tom Douglas recalls an earlier call when the young Olivia reported the disappearance of her first husband Dan, and wonders.
Two years later, Tom Douglas now a Chief Inspector is called by his boss Chief Superintendent Philippa Stanley who tells Tom that they have a missing-from-home case. But this time it is Olivia who has disappeared, and with her are the three children. A report from the PC who went to check it out says it's an odd situation, as her car is in the garage, and her purse is in her handbag – on the kitchen table. The police want to issue an appeal, but every single picture of this family has been removed from photo albums, phones, and computers.
The subsequent interviews with Robert and the evidence they find are all conflicting. In fact they cannot even establish when she was last seen. Then the forensic team find blood, and it turns into a murder hunt.
In the early chapters it quickly becomes apparent that Robert is utterly obsessed with Olivia. So when Robert reports Olivia missing we are two years further on, and as the police investigate, slowly the last two years unfold revealing the frightening intensity of Robert's obsession with Olivia.
The story is complex and has many twists, which makes compelling reading. I could not put this book down - heart in mouth as the tension mounts, and we reach the dramatic conclusion. Highly recommended.
Reviewer: Lizzie Hayes
Rachel Abbott, whose real name is Sheila Rodgers, was born just outside Manchester. She spent most of her working life as the Managing Director of an interactive media company, developing software and websites for the education market. The sale of that business enabled her to take early retirement and fulfil one of her lifelong ambitions - to buy and restore a property in Italy. .She bought a ruined monastery with its own chapel in Italy, and completely restored it, in the process starting a very successful business renting it out for weddings and conferences. She lived in Italy for some years before relocating to Alderney. In 2010 she fulfilled her ambition to write a novel with Only the Innocent and thus began her third successful career. She is a successful self-published author of crime novels, with a strong women's slant. Her first novel, Only The Innocent, went to no 1 in e-book format on Amazon. She has published three novels so far: Only The Innocent, The Back Road and Sleep Tight. The fourth, Stranger Child, comes out in e-book at the end of February.
www.rachel-abbott.com
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'Night After Night' by Phil Rickman
'Life or Death' by Michael Robotham
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'Riven' by A J McCreanor
Sorrow Bound by David Mark
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'Dark Dawn' and 'When Sorrows Come' by Matt McGuir...
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Here's a look back at San Francisco's New Year's Eve fireworks show from years past
Sad you're missing fireworks to ring in 2021? We have you covered! Here's a look back at the "bang pop whoosh" of the 2015 New Year's Eve celebration in San Francisco.
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Once again we are facing another surge in COVID-19 cases due to the omicron variant which has forced the cancellation of San Francisco's New Year's Eve fireworks show.
Since we are sure many of you will be cuddling safely on the couch this New Year's Eve, maybe watching "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest on ABC", or counting down to 2022 with family and friends on Zoom or Facetime, we decided to compile a "best of" fireworks show in the San Francisco Bay Area (because we are going to miss seeing the night sky illuminate in splashy colors this year).
RELATED: San Francisco's New Year's Eve fireworks show canceled due to ongoing surge in COVID-19 cases
Watch the video player above for a look back at the "bang pop whoosh" of the New Year's Eve fireworks celebration in the Bay Area ringing in January 1, 2016.
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Here's a look at New Year's Eve fireworks show in San Francisco


There's nothing natural about a vineyard. The grape vine's natural habitat is woodland, where it grows as a climbing plant that uses trees and bushes as a support. Left to itself, and given an adequate water supply, a vine will send out long, fast-growing shoots that search for something to climb up. The climbing shoots attach themselves firmly to the support plant by tendrils. Where a shoot touches the ground, it has the capacity to develop a new root system. And in its woodland habitat, a vine will produce relatively few small bunches of rather tart grapes that would make pretty thin, acidic wines.
In this sense, the most 'natural' vineyards are probably those that involve training the vines on pergolas, as is still the custom in Portugal's Vino Verde or Italy's Veneto regions. Here, individual vines are grown up a wooden support some distance from the ground (ladders are needed for the harvest). But the grapes that are produced by this method aren't particularly good.
More modern methods of growing grapes, in close-spaced rows on wire trellising, take advantage of the fact that making the vines struggle generally results in better quality grapes. It's a bit like people. Place someone in a near-perfect environment, giving them every comfort and all that they could ever want to satisfy their physical needs, and it could have rather disastrous consequences for their personality and physique. If you take a grapevine and make its physical requirements for water and nutrients easily accessible, then (somewhat counterintuitively) it will give you poor grapes.
Forgive my anthropomorphism, but this is because the grapevine has a choice. Given a favourable environment and it will choose to take the vegetative route: that is, it will put its energies into making leaves and shoots. Effectively, it is saying, 'This is a fine spot, I'm going to make myself at home here'. It won't be too bothered about making grapes. But make things difficult for the vine, by restricting water supply, making nutrients scarce, pruning it hard and crowding it with close neighbours, and it will take the hump. It will sense that this is not the ideal place to be a grapevine. Instead of devoting itself to growing big and sprawling, it will focus its effort on reproducing itself sexually, which for a vine means making grapes.
And this is just what the best vineyards do. Nutrients and water are necessary for growing vines, but they will be hard to find. Planted close to its neighbours, the vine will have to send roots deep into the subsoil in order to scavenge enough resources. This will have the added benefit of ensuring a steady but restricted water supply, ideal for producing high quality grapes. Another benefit of making the vine struggle a bit is that yields will be lower, and although the reasons aren't fully understood yet, lower yields generally result in better grapes.
These principles seem to be borne out by a new technique, called partial root drying (see here for an example). Normal irrigation techniques can make vines too lazy to produce top quality fruit. However, a new technique developed jointly by British scientists from Lancaster University and viticulturists from the University of Adelaide takes advantage of the fact that struggling vines concentrate more of their energies on fruit production. Partial root drying involves irrigating one side of the vine while letting the roots on the other side undergo a period of drought (lasting from 5-14 days). Then the irrigation is switched to the other side, and the cycle continues so that at any one time part of the root system is always under water stress. This causes the roots to send signals to the shoots (the plant hormone abscisic acid is involved) that tell them to concentrate on grape production, not growing leaves. As well as improving grape quality, this system also reduces the amount of water used by the plant. An added bonus is that there's no loss in yield, a trade-off that normally has to be made with enhanced grape quality. It sounds almost too good to be true.
But, as with people, while a little stress can be beneficial, too much is bad. In hot climates, once temperatures reach a certain level the grape vine shuts down. Grape development and vegetative growth stop. So somewhat counterintuitively grapes can actually take longer to ripen in very warm areas (such as Spain's central plains) than they do in cooler climates where the vines never undergo this shutting down through heat stress. There's also evidence that too much environmental stress can make vines more susceptible to diseases, too. As in many walks of life, balance seems to be the key.


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The Q1 Team
The Q1 Facility
Stability Storage
Sample Management
Ultra Low Storage
Pharmaceutical Blog
Q1 Scientific News
Q1 Scientific Newsletters
Q1 Scientific Podcast – The Business of Science
Q1 Scientific Sunday Business Post Interview
As the Irish pharma sector continues to grow at pace, smaller companies offering out-sourced niche-aligned services are also benefiting. One such company is Q1 Scientific, based in Waterford, which was named start-up of the year at this year's Pharma Awards.
Specialising in the provision of the highest-quality stability storage facilities, the company offers the pharmaceutical, medical devices and bio-sciences industries here an outsourcing option which many are deciding to take. "We've noticed that there's definitely an appetite now in the Irish pharma sector for out-sourcing to specialists such as ourselves," explained Louise Grubb, the chief executive of Q1 Scientific. She added: "That's not just true of smaller pharma companies, but larger ones as well. Because we offer stateof- the-art stability storage at our purpose-built facility in Waterford, as well as other highly specialised services, companies see sense and value for money in using us rather than doing all of this in-house." The emergence of pharma companies focusing mainly in research and development has assisted Q1 Scientific particularly.
The Pharma Start-up Company of the Year Award presented by Dr Niall Hoey, Portalis to Maureen Gilbert, operations coordinator and Louise Grubb, chief executive, Q1 Scientific
The company, established at the end of 2012, offers environmentally controlled and monitored stability storage facilities to meet all international regulatory standards. With tightly controlled temperatures and humidity rates at its spacious cGMP facility, it can store, manage and test samples over the life cycle of their stability plans, which can range from three to five years in most cases. The service offered by Q1 Scientific is unique in the Irish market Grubb explained. "At the moment there is no other company in Ireland which specialises in stability storage in this way. That creates great opportunities for us as a company, and we've been expanding at pace since we opened for business just over two years ago."
By the first half of next year Q1 Scientific plans to expand operations on its site in Waterford to meet demand. Currently, it employs six highly- skilled staff members who have a range of qualifications in pharma related disciplines, from quality control to laboratory analysis. And the company's chief executive believes receiving the start-up company of the year award will further boost its profile within the industry. She told The Sunday Business Post: "For a company in its early stages of development such as ours, this award is hugely significant and so very much appreciated. It helps in terms of building our credibility amongst our peers within the pharma sector in Ireland, and will help us reach more potential customers."
Q1 Scientific named Contract Services Company of the year at Pharma Industry Awards 2020
Q1 Scientific was named 'Contract Services Company of the Year' at the Pharma Industry Awards 2020. As a benchmark of our service, Q1 Scientific was also shortlisted for 'Pharma Company of the Year – SME'.
Supporting SOLAS and ALONE
This year, as we approach the holiday season, we have decided to support two fantastic charities, ALONE and the SOLAS Cancer Support Centre. 2020 has been an incredibly difficult year, but they continue to provide amazing support and services year on year.
No capacity storage issues for COVID19 vaccine
Recognising that the Pfizer BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine will need to be stored at subzero temperatures along with distribution challenges in rolling it out across Ireland, Q1 Scientific already stores and distributes medical drugs at this level and are ready to provide their services to store and distribute the anticipated COVID19 vaccine.
Why Outsource?
The Q1 Scientific Facility
The Q1 Scientific Team
© 2020 Q1 Scientific
Dedicated provider of outsourced stability
storage services for the pharmaceutical sector.
Westside Business Park,
Old Kilmeaden Road,
Co. Waterford, Ireland.
info@q1scientific.com


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Professor Shirish C. Srivastava is a AIS Distinguished Member - Cum Laude
The Association for Information Systems (AIS) has selected Professor Shirish C. Srivastava as a "Distinguished Member - Cum Laude", which is based on a continuous and worthy leadership contribution to the AIS institutional activities.
Shirish C. Srivastava, Professor of Information Systems at HEC Paris, has met the program requirements for selection as a Distinguished Member - Cum Laude by the Association for Information Systems. Professor Srivastava has been congratulated by the AIS "for supporting the association by maintaining continuous membership, for sharing his skills and talents by serving in an association leadership role, and for advancing the field of research through AIS and AIS affiliated journals."
Professor Srivastava has been continuously contributing to the research and service activities of the AIS for over 15 years. He has contributed to the organization of several AIS affiliated academic conferences and currently serves as a Senior Editor for two of the premier AIS journals - Journal of the Association for Information Systems (JAIS) and European Journal of Information Systems (EJIS).
Find research summaries from Shirish C. Srivastava on Knowledge@HEC.


You get a better look beneath the water with a Humminbird HELIX 7 DI G2 Sonar Fish Finder. The value of using a Humminbird starts with the detail and clarity of the images generated from the Broadband CHIRP Sonar shown on the 7" diagonal display. With SwitchFire Sonar you'll take command of how your returns appear using either a Clear or Max Mode. DualBeam PLUS sonar combines the detail of a narrow beam with the coverage area of a wide beam for better clarity and coverage area. The HELIX 7 DI G2 Fishfinder, is equipped with a new user interface and generates 500 watts of RMS power (4,000 watts PTP) for clarity down to depths of 1,500' with returns shown in high-def 800 x 480 pixel resolution color.
7" diagonal high-def color display with LED backlight gives you impressive clarity in any light conditions.


Vietnam visa requirements for Solomon Islands. This page provided informations about visa requirement or exemption for citizens of Solomon Islands. Vietnamese or Solomon Islands government policy may changes, now. If you've got new infos about requirements for Solomon Islands 's passport holder, please contact us. Thank you!
Do Solomon Islander citizens need a visa to Vietnam?
Yes, solomon-islands passport holders need a visa to Visit Vietnam.
We wish to notify that you have to apply for a Vietnam visa to enter Vietnam if you are a Solomon Islands passport holder.


All the kings on the east side of the Jordan River in the land of promise—Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—decided to join forces and fight against the Israelites as one army.
Note: Gibeon was a city about six miles northwest of Jerusalem and was actually the capital city of the Hivites according to JFB.
The people living in Gibeon, however, had a different plan. When they heard what Joshua and the Israelites had done to Jericho and Ai, they decided to try and make a league with them through the use of deception. They sent ambassadors to Joshua that appeared to have traveled a long way. They put old sacks on their donkeys, carried old wine bottles, wore obviously old and worn shoes and garments, and carried bread that was dry and moldy. When they approached Joshua and the men of Israel, they declared that they had come from a far country to make a peace treaty with them..
The men of Israel basically told the men (identified now as Hivites) that since they couldnÕt be sure that they werenÕt near neighbors, they could not make a treaty with them. They immediately addressed Joshua and declared to be his servants. So Joshua asked them directly where they were from.
The men from Gibeon lied and told Joshua that they were from a very far country and had only come because of their fear of IsraelÕs God. They knew what he had done for them in Egypt and how he had destroyed Sihon and Og, kings of Heshbon and Bashan respectively. In light of these facts, the people of their country told them to take what they needed for their journey and go and ask to establish a peace treaty with Israel. Then they took out the dry and moldy bread they carried and lied again, saying that it had been hot and fresh from the oven when they left. They also showed them the bottles of wine and pointed out their old clothes and shoes—obvious testimony to having made a very long journey.
Joshua 9:15 ¦ And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.
The men of Israel examined the evidence and, to their regret, did not ask for the LORDÕs direction. Joshua made the peace treaty with them to let their people live, and the leaders of Israel affirmed it with an oath. Commentators note that this treaty was more than just a peace treaty; it placed the people they represented under their protection.
Three days later they found out that the men were their neighbors. Taking the three day journey to confront them, they found that the cities in which they lived were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth and Kirjathjearim.
The leaders of Israel knew that they had done wrong, but declared that they had to let the deceivers live because they had affirmed the treaty with an oath sworn by the name of the LORD. If they broke such an oath, they feared GodÕs wrath because of the dishonor it would bring to His name. They decided that they would let the people live, but make them their servants. They would be required to cut wood and draw water for the whole congregation.
Joshua 9:22 ¦ And Joshua called for them, and he spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying, We are very far from you; when ye dwell among us?
Joshua called for the men of Gibeon to inform them of their decision. First, however, he asked them why they had deceived them and claimed to live far away. Because of their deceit, they would serve Israel as slaves and be required to cut wood and draw water to provide for the needs of the people at the tabernacle.
The men of Gibeon explained that they had heard that the LORD their God had commanded His servant Moses to give them the land and destroy all of its inhabitants. They used deception because they were afraid for their lives. They basically told Joshua that they knew they were at his mercy.
Joshua spared their lives and made them slaves as they had decided. The Gibeonites cut wood and drew water for the use of the people at the tabernacle and were still doing so at the time this book was written.
Guzik provides some interesting facts about the Gibeonites.
á The Gibeonites became servants at the tabernacle, just as Joshua had commanded.
á Gibeon becomes a priestly city; the Ark of the Covenant stayed at Gibeon often in the days of David and Solomon (1 Chronicles 16:39-40 and 21:29).
á At least one of DavidÕs mighty men was a Gibeonite (1 Chronicles 12:4).
á God spoke to Solomon at Gibeon (1 Kings 3:4).
á Gibeonites were among those who rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem with Nehemiah (Nehemiah 3:7 and 7:25).


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S.2334 - 21st Century Energy Workforce Act of 2019116th Congress (2019-2020)
Sen. Cantwell, Maria [D-WA] (Introduced 07/30/2019)
S. Rept. 116-150
Senate - 10/24/2019 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 271. (All Actions)
Array ( [actionDate] => 2019-10-24 [displayText] => Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Murkowski without amendment. With written report No. 116-150. [externalActionCode] => 14000 [description] => Introduced [chamberOfAction] => Senate )
There are 2 versions: Reported to Senate (10/24/2019)Introduced in Senate (07/30/2019)
Reported to Senate (10/24/2019)
Calendar No. 271
[Report No. 116–150]
To require the Secretary of Energy to establish the 21st Century Energy Workforce Advisory Board, and for other purposes.
Ms. Cantwell (for herself and Ms. Hirono) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
Reported by Ms. Murkowski, without amendment
SECTION 1. Short title.
This Act may be cited as the "21st Century Energy Workforce Act of 2019".
SEC. 2. Definitions.
In this Act:
(1) BOARD.—The term "Board" means the 21st Century Energy Workforce Advisory Board established under section 3(a).
(2) DEPARTMENT.—The term "Department" means the Department of Energy.
(3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term "Indian tribe" has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).
(4) MINORITY-SERVING INSTITUTION.—The term "minority-serving institution" means an institution of higher education eligible to receive funds under section 371(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067q(a)).
(5) NATIONAL LABORATORY.—The term "National Laboratory" has the meaning given the term in section 2 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15801).
(6) SECRETARY.—The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Energy.
SEC. 3. 21st Century Energy Workforce Advisory Board.
(a) Establishment.—The Secretary shall establish a board, to be known as the "21st Century Energy Workforce Advisory Board", to develop a strategy for the support and development of a skilled energy workforce that—
(1) meets the current and future industry and labor needs of the energy sector;
(2) provides opportunities for students to become qualified for placement in traditional energy sector and clean energy sector jobs;
(3) aligns apprenticeship programs and workforce development programs to provide industry-recognized certifications and credentials;
(4) encourages leaders in the education system of the United States to equip students with the skills, mentorships, training, and technical expertise necessary to fill the employment opportunities vital to managing and operating the energy- and manufacturing-related industries of the United States;
(5) appropriately supports other Federal agencies;
(6) strengthens and more fully engages workforce training programs of the Department and the National Laboratories in carrying out the Minorities in Energy Initiative of the Department and other Department workforce priorities;
(7) supports the design and replication of existing model energy curricula, particularly in new and emerging technologies, that leads to industry-wide credentials;
(8) develops plans to support and retrain displaced and unemployed energy sector workers; and
(9) makes a Department priority to provide education and job training to underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, Indian tribes, women, veterans, and socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals.
(b) Membership.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall be composed of 9 members, with the initial members of the Board to be appointed by the Secretary not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act.
(2) NOMINATIONS.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology shall nominate for appointment to the Board under paragraph (1) not fewer than 18 individuals who meet the qualifications described in paragraph (3).
(3) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each individual nominated for appointment to the Board under paragraph (1) shall—
(A) be eminent in the field of economics or workforce development;
(B) have expertise in relevant traditional energy industries or clean energy industries;
(C) have expertise in secondary or postsecondary education;
(D) have expertise in energy workforce development or apprentice programs of States or units of local government;
(E) have expertise in relevant organized labor organizations; or
(F) have expertise in bringing underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, women, veterans, and socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals, into the workforce.
(4) REPRESENTATION.—The membership of the Board shall be representative of the broad range of the energy industry, labor organizations, workforce development, education, minority participation, cybersecurity, and economics disciplines related to activities carried out under this section.
(5) LIMITATION.—No individual shall be nominated for appointment to the Board who is an employee of an entity applying for a grant under section 4.
(c) Advisory board review and recommendations.—
(1) DETERMINATION BY BOARD.—In developing the strategy required under subsection (a), the Board shall—
(A) determine whether there are opportunities to more effectively and efficiently use the capabilities of the Department in the development of a skilled energy workforce;
(B) identify ways in which the Department could work with other relevant Federal agencies, States, units of local government, educational institutions, labor, and industry in the development of a skilled energy workforce;
(C) identify ways in which the Department and National Laboratories can—
(i) increase outreach to minority-serving institutions; and
(ii) make resources available to increase the number of skilled minorities and women trained to go into the energy- and manufacturing-related sectors;
(D) identify ways in which the Department and National Laboratories can—
(i) increase outreach to displaced and unemployed energy sector workers; and
(ii) make resources available to provide training to displaced and unemployed energy sector workers to reenter the energy workforce; and
(E) identify the energy sectors in greatest need of workforce training and develop guidelines for the skills necessary to develop a workforce trained to work in those energy sectors.
(2) REQUIRED ANALYSIS.—In developing the strategy required under subsection (a), the Board shall analyze the effectiveness of—
(A) existing Department-directed support; and
(B) developing energy workforce training programs.
(3) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date on which the Board is established under this section, and each year thereafter, the Board shall submit to the Secretary and Congress, and make public, a report containing, with respect to the strategy required under subsection (a)—
(A) the findings of the Board; and
(B) model energy curricula.
(d) Report by Secretary.—Not later than 18 months after the date on which the Board is established under this section, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report that—
(1) describes whether the Secretary approves or disapproves the recommendations of the Board under subsection (c)(3); and
(2) provides an implementation plan for recommendations approved by the Board under paragraph (1).
(e) Clearinghouse.—Based on the recommendations of the Board under subsection (c)(3), the Secretary shall establish a clearinghouse—
(1) to maintain and update information and resources on training and workforce development programs for energy- and manufacturing-related jobs; and
(2) to act as a resource, and provide guidance, for secondary schools, institutions of higher education (including community colleges and minority-serving institutions), workforce development organizations, labor management organizations, and industry organizations that would like to develop and implement energy- and manufacturing-related training programs.
(f) Outreach to minority-Serving institutions.—In developing the strategy under subsection (a), the Board shall—
(1) give special consideration to increasing outreach to minority-serving institutions, including—
(A) part B institutions (as defined in section 322 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1061));
(B) Predominantly Black institutions (as defined in section 371(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067q(c)));
(C) Hispanic-serving institutions (as defined in section 502(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1101a(a))); and
(D) Tribal Colleges or Universities (as defined in section 316(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)));
(2) make resources available to minority-serving institutions with the objective of increasing the number of skilled minorities and women trained to go into the energy and manufacturing sectors; and
(3) encourage industry to improve the opportunities for students of minority-serving institutions to participate in industry internships and cooperative work-study programs.
(g) Sunset.—The Board shall remain in effect until September 30, 2024.
SEC. 4. Energy workforce pilot grant program.
(a) In general.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education, shall establish a pilot program to award grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities for job training programs that lead to an industry-recognized credential.
(b) Eligibility.—To be eligible to receive a grant under this section, an entity shall be a public or nonprofit organization or a consortium of public or nonprofit organizations that—
(1) includes an advisory board of proportional participation, as determined by the Secretary, of relevant organizations, including—
(A) relevant energy industry organizations, including public and private employers;
(B) labor organizations;
(C) postsecondary education organizations; and
(D) workforce development boards;
(2) demonstrates experience in implementing and operating job training and education programs;
(3) demonstrates the ability to recruit and support individuals who plan to work in the energy industry in the successful completion of relevant job training and education programs; and
(4) provides students who complete the job training and education program with an industry-recognized credential.
(c) Applications.—Eligible entities desiring a grant under this section shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.
(d) Priority.—In selecting eligible entities to receive grants under this section, the Secretary shall prioritize applicants that—
(1) house the job training and education programs in—
(A) a community college or other institution of higher education that includes basic science and math education in the curriculum of the community college or other institution of higher education; or
(B) an apprenticeship program registered with the Department of Labor or a State (as defined in section 202 of the Energy Conservation and Production Act (42 U.S.C. 6802)) (referred to in this section as a "State");
(2) work with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or veteran service organizations recognized by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs under section 5902 of title 38, United States Code, to transition members of the Armed Forces and veterans to careers in the energy sector;
(3) work with—
(A) Indian tribes;
(B) tribal organizations (as defined in section 3765 of title 38, United States Code); and
(C) Native American veterans (as defined in section 3765 of title 38, United States Code), including veterans who are descendants of Natives (as defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602));
(4) apply as a State or regional consortia to leverage best practices already available in the State or region in which the community college or other institution of higher education is located;
(5) have a State-supported entity included in the consortium applying for the grant;
(6) include an apprenticeship program registered with the Department of Labor or a State as part of the job training and education program;
(7) provide support services and career coaching;
(8) provide introductory energy workforce development training;
(9) work with minority-serving institutions to provide job training to increase the number of skilled minorities and women in the energy sector; or
(10) provide job training for displaced and unemployed workers in the energy sector.
(e) Additional consideration.—In making grants under this section, the Secretary shall consider regional diversity.
(f) Limitation on applications.—An eligible entity may not submit, either individually or as part of a joint application, more than 1 application for a grant under this section during any 1 fiscal year.
(g) Limitations on amount of grant.—The amount of an individual grant for any 1 fiscal year shall not exceed $2,000,000.
(h) Cost sharing.—
(1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the cost of a job training and education program carried out using a grant under this section shall be not greater than 65 percent.
(2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The non-Federal share of the cost of a job training and education program carried out using a grant under this section shall consist of not less than 50 percent cash.
(B) LIMITATION.—Not greater than 50 percent of the non-Federal contribution of the total cost of a job training and education program carried out using a grant under this section may be in the form of in-kind contributions of goods or services fairly valued.
(i) Reduction of duplication.—Prior to submitting an application for a grant under this section, each applicant shall consult with the appropriate agencies of the Federal Government and coordinate the proposed activities of the applicant with existing State and local programs.
(j) Direct assistance.—In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall provide direct assistance (including technical expertise, wraparound services, career coaching, mentorships, internships, and partnerships) to entities that receive a grant under this section.
(k) Technical assistance.—The Secretary shall provide technical assistance and capacity building to national and State energy partnerships, including the entities described in subsection (b)(1), to leverage the existing job training and education programs of the Department.
(l) Report.—The Secretary shall submit to Congress and make publicly available on the website of the Department an annual report on the program established under this section, including a description of—
(1) the entities receiving grants;
(2) the activities carried out using the grants;
(3) best practices used to leverage the investment of the Federal Government;
(4) the rate of employment for participants after completing a job training and education program carried out using a grant; and
(5) an assessment of the results achieved by the program.
(m) Authorization of appropriations.—There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024.
Reported without amendment


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You are here: Home Reports & data Indigenous Australians Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations aged 50 and over: updated analyses for 2018–19
Go to Indigenous Australians
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations aged 50 and over: updated analyses for 2018–19
Topic: Indigenous Australians
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2021) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations aged 50 and over: updated analyses for 2018–19, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 02 February 2023. doi:10.25816/69kw-7h07
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2021). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations aged 50 and over: updated analyses for 2018–19. Canberra: AIHW.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations aged 50 and over: updated analyses for 2018–19. AIHW, 2021.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations aged 50 and over: updated analyses for 2018–19. Canberra: AIHW; 2021.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2021, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations aged 50 and over: updated analyses for 2018–19, AIHW, Canberra.
PDF | 958Kb
This report provides estimates of and analysis of comparative differences for the Stolen Generations survivors who were aged 50 and over in a 2018–19 survey. They were more likely to be worse off than other Indigenous Australians of the same age on a range of health and socioeconomic outcomes. The findings in the report will be useful to assess the needs of the Stolen Generations and their families.
DOI: Link to DOI: 10.25816/69kw-7h07
Cat. no: IHW257
There were an estimated 27,200 Stolen Generations survivors aged 50 and over in 2018–19
Stolen Generations aged 50+ were 1.8 times as likely as other Indigenous Australians of this age not to own a home
There were an estimated 33,600 Stolen Generations survivors in 2018–19
1 in 5 Indigenous Australians aged 50+ in 2018–19 had been removed from their families


My kid rode home from the hospital in a car seat – an approved, properly anchored car seat. The electrical outlets in our home were carefully covered with plastic safety plugs. I read him books and checked his homework and made sure he held my hand when crossing a street. I tried to limit his soda and french-fries and I encouraged him to drink his milk and eat his vegetables.
I bet you did the same with your kids.
As parents, we do everything we can to ensure the safety, success and happiness of our children. We want to give them every possible advantage.
Yet most of us stand by and do nothing when the financial aid officer offers them a student loan. It's not that the parents or the students are stupid, they are just sucked in. We've been taught that it is normal to go to college on a student loan. If NYU is your child's dream, it seems that at the time it's worth anything to make that dream come true.
It is not. The four year dream can become the 10, 15 or 30 year nightmare.
Do you remember you first debt?
What if it was a student loan in the amount $97,000 for a degree in Religion and Women's Studies?
Let's think about this a minute. Cortney Munna, the Religion and Women's Studies graduate, will be making payments of over $700 for 15 years. How many recent college graduates do you know that have $700 a month available in their budget?
She will have to make these payments no matter what. Unlike credit card debt, student loans normally are not discharged with bankruptcy. And unlike a car or a house there is no asset to repossess. It is nearly impossible to have a student loan forgiven. It does not matter if Cortney should face a spell of unemployment or if her spouse or child should become ill, the payments are due and if she doesn't make them her loan will be in default. Defaulted loans continue to accrue interest and collection charges.
Defaulting on a student loan can have very serious consequences. Garnishment of wages is one probable result. Additionally, the government can intercept your tax refund and/or take a portion of your Social Security disability or retirement benefit. Another crippling consequence of a defaulted federal loan may be the inability to renew a professional license. View the excellent graphic The Student Loan Scheme.
Even if Cortney is never late on a payment, she has started her life as an adult in a huge hole with tremendous risk.
So how could this have turned out different?
We have to love our children enough to say NO. NO you cannot cross the street alone when your 5, NO you cannot drink and drive and NO you absolutely will not go $97,000 in debt for a degree in Religion and Women's Studies.
Would she have listened? If it were life or death, you could make your adult child listen.
This is life or no life; find a way to get through. Get her to talk to 5 recent grads in her field; look up starting salaries; make a budget of what life will be like after graduation. Work together and explore ways of getting the same results without the debt.
If your old student loans are still hanging around or if you have children who are accumulating or contemplating student loans, print out this excellent graphic from CollegeScholarships.org and post it on your refrigerator.


In AEM in the touch-optimized user interface, select Sites then Campaigns, then browse to where your email campaigns are managed. In the following example, the path is Sites > Campaigns > Geometrixx Outdoors > Email Campaigns.
In the touch-optimized UI, select the email page and click View Properties.
In the touch-optimized UI, select the email page and click Edit. Click Open Properties.


text:
Q: `Ffmpeg` aptitude install seems to break packages. I tried to install ffmpeg because I thought/think it is needed for compiling OpenCV. However, when trying to do that I think I screwed up. How can I undo what I did?
$ sudo aptitude install ffmpeg
The following packages will be REMOVED:
libalut-dev{u} libalut0{u} libcoin60{u} libgeos-3.2.2{u} libgeos-c1{u} libhal1{u}
    libhdf4-0-alt{u} libnetcdf6{u} libogdi3.2{u} libopenal-dev{u} libproj0{u}
    libxerces-c28{u} proj-bin{u} proj-data{u} unixodbc{u}
0 packages upgraded, 0 newly installed, 15 to remove and 16 not upgraded.
Need to get 0 B of archives. After unpacking 25.1 MB will be freed.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n/?] y
(Reading database ... 222527 files and directories currently installed.)
Removing libalut-dev ...
Removing libalut0 ...
Removing libcoin60 ...
Removing libgeos-c1 ...
Removing libgeos-3.2.2 ...
Removing libhal1 ...
Removing libhdf4-0-alt ...
Removing libnetcdf6 ...
Removing libogdi3.2 ...
Removing libopenal-dev ...
Removing proj-bin ...
Removing libproj0 ...
Removing libxerces-c28 ...
Removing proj-data ...
Removing unixodbc ...
Processing triggers for man-db ...
Processing triggers for libc-bin ...
ldconfig deferred processing now taking place

Current status: 43955 new [+14349].
$ sudo aptitude safe-upgrade
Resolving dependencies...
Unable to resolve dependencies for the upgrade: no solution found.
Unable to safely resolve dependencies, try running with --full-resolver.

Please comment if more information are needed.

A: I solved it. For others:
I did aptitude why ffmpeg and it gave k9copy and dvdrip. I removed those. Then I removed ffmpeg. That might not have been the problem. apt-get dist-upgrade -s gave me a list ob packages that were to be upgraded. The first one being libboost-all-dev. Again, why told me that it was not needed, so I removed it. Only three packages were left now. All being in combination to libboost- Those were packages I had installed by hand before the upgrade. I removed those and now the system is clean again.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Bullz-Eye's 2012 TV Power Rankings
Posted by Will Harris (02/17/2012 @ 2:26 pm)
20. Californication (Showtime)
It's not that the basic theme of "Californication" has ever really changed over the course of its run – at its heart, it's about Hank Moody (David Duchovny) trying to see how many times he can fuck, get fucked up, and completely fuck up his life and still end up with his beloved Karen (Natascha McElhone) – but as writers, we love it because it's a chance to see how debauchery-filled we always figured our lives were going to be when we started doing this gig. Also, it continues to be highly enjoyable to see what guest stars are going to be brought into the mix, and Season 4 gave us some good ones, including Rob Lowe and Carla Gugino. It's still early days in Season 5 as of this writing, but executive producer Tom Kapanos' decision to jump ahead almost three years (which, by coincidence, is basically what "Weeds" did, too) seems to have been a positive move creatively.
19. Boardwalk Empire (HBO)
When "Boardwalk Empire" first premiered, many viewers were, like, "Oh, sure, it looks awesome, and you can't help but like Steve Buscemi, but it's just not grabbing me." As its freshman season progressed, however, things really began to pop deeper into the ensemble, with Michael Shannon portraying Agent Van Alden as an increasingly disturbed – and disturbing – individual, Michael Kenneth Williams made Chalky White a force to be reckoned with, and Jack Huston offered an air of mystery as Richard Harrow, the man behind the mask. When the series returned for its second year, the ante was upped even further, taking several major characters out of commission permanently by season's end. If you aren't grabbed now, you probably never will be, but we're sure on board with "Boardwalk."
18. How I Met Your Mother (CBS)
What? We still don't know who the mother is…? Sorry, had to be done. (At this point, it's kind of a TV Power Rankings tradition to make that joke.) The status quo on "HIMYM" has changed a fair amount of late, with Marshall and Lily having moved to the suburbs in advance of the birth of their child, Robin entering into her version of a serious relationship with her former therapist (played by Kal Penn), and even Barney occasionally stepping outside his uber-bro self to show signs of emotional growth. But Ted…? That guy's still hopeless. Looks like we've still got awhile ahead of us before the series wraps, based on recent conversations in the press, but there's still enough life left in the series to keep us coming back.
17. The Office (NBC)
Of all the shows on the TV Power Rankings, "The Office" is the one which had the biggest issue to overcome this season. With the departure of Steve Carell from its ranks, everyone wondered what new blood would be brought in to freshen things up. The first answer was Will Ferrell, who, quite frankly, was a huge disappointment. When Season 8 premiered, however, we were fortunate enough to have James Spader reprising his role from the season finale as Robert California, now promoted to CEO of Sabre. There have also been other guests popping up here and there, from Catherine Tate to Maura Tierney to Stephen Collins. We've even seen David Koechner clear his schedule in order to bring Todd Packer back into the picture. Some say "The Office" should just be put out of its misery, and if that happens, we'd understand, but at the moment we're still finding it pretty funny.
16. Homeland (Showtime)
There are some who say that "Homeland," a series about a CIA officer (Clare Danes) who believes that a Marine war hero and former POW (Damian Lewis) has been turned to the side of Al-Qaeda, is head and shoulders in quality above any other series on Showtime. Clearly, our Power Rankings suggest otherwise. Once Season 1 of the shows hits Blu-ray and DVD, however, don't be surprised if more than a few people – including members of our own staff – suddenly realize that, yeah, actually, those other people are right. Full of nail-biting tension, remarkable writing, and wonderful performances by Danes, Lewis, Mandy Patinkin, and Morena Baccarin, "Homeland" is one of those rare series that virtually every critic can agree upon…but only if they've actually seen it. So what are you waiting for? Go subscribe to Showtime already: the whole thing's available via On Demand!
15. Dexter (Showtime)
Those of you who tuned in to Season 6 of "Dexter" looking for parenting tips may not have reacted to Showtime's advertising campaign in quite the fashion the network had intended. Rest assured, fatherhood has not done anything to stem Dexter's tendencies toward killing, but as good as the series continues to be, it's still a little hard to think that it'll ever reach the same heights again that it did when John Lithgow did his arc. Still, in fairness, however, Edward James Olmos and Colin Hanks proved to be sufficiently satisfying as the Doomsday Killers.
14. The Daily Show / The Colbert Report (Comedy Central)
Sometimes it feels like a little bit of a cop-out to combine these two Comedy Central staples, since they're very different shows with their own distinct comedic identities, but if that's what it takes to make sure they're still flying high in the ratings (and to allow us to slip another program into the list somewhere), then so be it. Both Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert continue to deliver incisive political commentary couched (or sometimes not) in comedy. Long may they reign.
13. American Horror Story (FX)
The partnership of Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk has given us great things in their time, including "Nip/Tuck" and "Glee," so there was every reason to expect that their latest endeavor, "American Horror Story" would, if nothing else, be fascinating to watch unfold. And so it has been, although your mileage may vary as far as whether or not you actually think it's any good. Sometimes it's disconcerting, other times it's darkly hilarious, and, more often than not, it's just plain batshit crazy, but in addition to two well-seasoned leads holding the insanity together (thank you, Dylan McDermott and Connie Britton), it also features fantastic supporting performances by Jessica Lange and Denis O'Hare. God only knows where Murphy and Falchuk are going to take this thing when it comes back for its second season, but whether it slumps or succeeds, we can still probably count on not being able to take our eyes off the screen.
12. Hell on Wheels (AMC)
We won't deny that there are comparisons to be made between this series and "Deadwood," but, hell, they're both westerns, so what did you expect? That's like bitching that "Gunsmoke" and "The Rifleman" are too damned similar. No, "Hell on Wheels" hasn't yet hit the heights of its AMC brethren, but as businessman Thomas "Doc" Durant, Colm Meaney's performance alone is just about enough reason to start watching the show, and as it progresses, the diversity of the characters certainly keeps viewers from ever getting bored.
11. Parks and Recreation (NBC)
Bullz-Eye doesn't actually have an official spokesperson, but if we were hiring, you can damned well bet that Ron Swanson would be in the running. "Parks and Recreation" continues to get better and better with each season, and while all it takes is a quick trip back to Season 1 to remember why we first wrote it off as a pale imitation of "The Office," we've forgiven it for those transgressions several times over by this point. The relationship between Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) and Ben Wyatt (Adam Scott) has been great fun to watch unfold, as has the unexpectedly successful marriage of Andy (Chris Pratt) and April (Aubrey Plaza), and watching Tom (Aziz Anzari) and Jean-Ralphio (Ben Schwartz) work together has been comedy gold. Although we're still in mourning for Li'l Sebastian even now, the laughs we get out of Pawnee each week has been invaluable in our emotional recovery.
The Light from the TV Shows: 11 Series (give or take) That Should've Survived 2011
The Light from the TV Shows: 12 Shows to Look Forward to in 2012
The Light from the TV Shows: "Game of Thrones" begins anew (and so does "The Killing")
The Light from the TV Shows: 10 new series which *MIGHT* end up on Bullz-Eye's next TV Power Rankings
Pages: 1 2 3 4 (Previous Page Next Page)
Posted in: Entertainment, News, Television
Tags: ABC, Alcatraz, AMC, American Horror Story, Archer, Awake, Boardwalk Empire, Boss, Breaking Bad, Bullz-Eye's TV Power Rankings, Bullz-Eye's TV Power Rankings - 2012 Edition, Californication, CBS, Comedy Central, Community, Cougar Town, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Dexter, Don't Trust The B---- In Apt. 23, Fox, Fringe, FX, Game of Thrones, HBO, Hell on Wheels, Homeland, How I Met Your Mother, How to Make It in America, Hung, Justified, Key & Peele, Luck, mad men, Modern Family, NBC, New Girl, Parenthood, Parks and Recreation, Shameless, Showtime, Smash, Sons of Anarchy, Starz, Suburgatory, The Big Bang Theory, The Colbert Report, The Daily Show, The Killing, The League, The Middle, The Office, The River, The Walking Dead, Tosh.0, Touch, TV Power Rankings, TV Power Rankings - 2012 Edition, Weeds, Will Harris


It's not the answers that matter, it's the questions. For city builders — whether they are politicians, planners, developers, architects or engineers — asking the right questions is the most crucial component of the process.
Inability to understand this leads inevitably to failure.
Talking to a room full of professional urbanists earlier this month, DIALOG principal, Antonio Gomez-Palacio, was blunt about the problem.
The purpose of the gathering was to discuss a handbook that will address city-building through the lens of community well-being.
The report, which will be published in July, was prepared by DIALOG, a multi-discipline design practice, and the Conference Board of Canada. It will be available in July, free of charge, to all interested professionals.
"It's not an abstract conversation," Gomez-Palacio explains.
That sounds obvious, but looking around the built environment of Toronto and its surroundings, it's clearly a lesson we have yet to learn.
"We don't think that planning and architecture can solve all the problems in the world," says another DIALOG principal, Craig Applegath.
Perhaps the best-documented connection between built form and people's lives, Applegath argues, is planning and active lifestyles.
The obesity epidemic that has swept across North America, for example, is due in part to the drastic reduction of walking in modern life. In the name of the car, vast swaths of suburbia have been laid out for the convenience of drivers. As a result, even for those suburbanites who would be pedestrians, there are few places to walk.
This isn't something Canadian governments talk about. It is revealing, though, that last January, Britain's hard-right Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May named a minister for loneliness.
UK statistics tell us that nine million Britons describe themselves as lonely.
It's not about changing the community, it's about enhancing the experience. DIALOG brings unique #affordablehousing project to life in #Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Learn more through Link in bio.
Clearly, architects, planners and developers play a role in dealing with such an intractable problem. Single-use zoning, for instance, can leave seniors isolated, not just in apartment towers but in neighbourhoods that have nothing to offer but more of the same.
But who's raising issues such as these?
The developers don't. Their concern is to sell units. Neither do architects. Their worry is design. Nor do planners. Their preoccupation is the rulebook. That leaves politicians, who spend their capital playing to the crowd with measures like keeping taxes low and filling potholes.
The Community Wellbeing Framework provides these same professionals with a list of specific questions that enables them and their clients to see beyond the myopia of their training, experience and ambition.
Does the project facilitate the uptake of active transportation, active lifestyles, and reduced car-dependency?
Can people of different income levels afford a high quality of life?
Can people realize the activities of everyday life within walking distance?
Are a diversity of perspectives, stakeholders, community, and disciplines meaningfully integrated from the outset and throughout the implementation/life of the project?
These are just a few examples, each indicative of an exercise carefully crafted to clarify thinking and open eyes.
This attempt to create a more holistic approach to city building is a sign of Toronto's growing maturity and a deeper understanding of the need to see each project within the larger civic context. No longer is it enough simply to examine and judge a proposal in terms of how it meets an existing set of largely arbitrary criteria.
What will make the document important is whether it marks the beginning of a cultural shift.
Rules and regulations will change, of course, but that won't alter how professionals think. To accomplish that will be infinitely more difficult, especially in a city where political leadership has become an obstacle to change.
But as the handbook also shows, with the civic government missing in action, leadership now comes from the other sectors — institutional, professional and private.


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Top Books Widget
5 stars across 60 books
Pete Johnson Biography
Pete Johnson is a multi-award winning author, whose books have achieved global success and are now published in twenty-nine translations.
Pete was born in Winchester and some of his earliest memories are of visiting the local library. As a child, Pete's favourite book was '101 Dalmatians.' A fan letter to the book's author, Dodie Smith, changed his life. For it was she who suggested he should try and become a writer, as she thought he would make a good one.
Before that dream came true, Pete was a film extra, a film critic for Radio One and an English and Drama teacher in Buckinghamshire. His breakthrough book was 'The Ghost Dog,' a spooky tale about the power of imagination, which won The Young Telegraph award. Other acclaimed thrillers followed including, 'Traitor' and 'Avenger,' which have earned special praise for their powerful anti-bullying message and are widely used in schools.
Pete's most popular character is undoubtedly Louis –or 'Louis the Laugh' as he calls himself. He first burst on to the scene in 'How to Train your Parents,' which is Pete's biggest international hit. Three more Louis books followed – the latest, 'How to Update Your Parents,' has made a special impact because of its topical subject – Louis's parents decide it's time for a digital detox and ban all electronic media for a week.
Pete says, 'Books transport you away into another world completely. They not only feed and develop your imagination but enable you to understand characters who at first can seem totally different to you.'
Pete's latest book 'How to Fool Your Parents' is being released in 2017.
Pete Johnson Facts
As a film critic Pete interviewed many actors. One of his favourites was Nicolas Cage, because he was 'brilliant fun and kept you laughing all the time.'
When he was younger Pete used to sleep-walk regularly. One night he woke up to discover he was walking along a busy road in his pyjamas.
Pete was made a reading champion by The Book Trust, in recognition of all his work promoting books and reading in schools and libraries.
Pete likes to start writing by eight o'clock in the morning. But he writes all his spooky tales at night. 'It really helps get the right atmosphere,' he says.
Pete collects signed books. His first one was 'James and the Giant Peach,' which Roald Dahl signed for him at The National Theatre. Pete remembers Dahl as being 'really friendly and jolly.'
Our favourite Pete Johnson book characters:
Louis the Laugh in How to Train your Parents
Miranda in Trust me I'm A Troublemaker
Spencer, the boy determined not to turn into a teenager in Diary of an (Un)Teenager
Our favourite Pete Johnson book quotes:
'Do you know what I'm suffering from?
Parent Fatigue.' (How to Train your Parents)
'I had to do something to lighten the atmosphere, but what?
Then I knew. I'd pretend to be an orang-utan. That never fails to raise a smile.'(My Parents are Driving me Crazy)
'It was the ugliest, most horrible thing I had ever seen. And I'd brought it to life.'(The Ghost Dog)
'Their text message was short and not at all sweet. PAY UP ON MON OR ELSE. After seeing that I couldn't stop shaking. In the end I put the blankets over my head and curled up into a ball.'(Traitor)
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How to Update Your Parents
How to Fool Your Parents
How to Change Your Parents into Superstars
The "rip-roaringly hilarious" (Book Trust) Louis the Laugh returns for more outrageous adventures, so get ready to laugh... More
How To Train Your Parents
Moving to a new area and a new school, Louis is horrified to discover his parents changing into ultra-competitive parent... More
Bug Brother
The Vampire Hunters
When Parker Banks moves with his family from London to New York, he struggles to adapt to his new school and environment... More
My Parents Are Out Of Control
Louis doesn't think much of it when his mum and dad ask him for tips on how to be cool. In fact, he thinks it's pretty... More
Girl Gang
Quiet, self-conscious Amy is dead chuffed when the hard girls invite her to join their secret gang, but as one dare lead... More
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by ProfessorSnape
This is a humorous book, which reminded me a little of the 'Wimpy Kid' series. Louis moves to a new school but the opportunities for clowning around a...
by RonWeasley
I read this book really quickly because it is so good. It's about Louis, who wants to become a comedian. He gets into trouble at school. He makes frie...
by BellaCam
My daughter was glued to this book and laughing all the way through. Its a light hearted funny book and a great length for younger readers. ...
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text:
Born: 15-Jun-1330
Birthplace: Woodstock, England
Died: 8-Jun-1376
Location of death: Westminster, England
Remains: Buried, Canterbury Cathedral, Canterbury, Kent, England
Occupation: Royalty
Nationality: England
Executive summary: Eldest son of King Edward III
Edward, Prince of Wales, known as "The Black Prince", the eldest son of King Edward III and Philippa of Hainaut, was born at Woodstock on the 15th of June 1330. Contemporaries called him Edward of Woodstock, and his surname of the Black Prince cannot be traced back earlier than the 16th century. It is supposed to have been derived from his wearing black armor. In 1333 he was made Earl of Chester, and in 1337 Duke of Cornwall, being the first duke ever created in England. Nominal warden of England during his father's absences abroad in 1338 and 1342, he was created Prince of Wales in 1343, and in 1345 he first accompanied his father on a foreign expedition.
His real career begins, however, with Edward III's Norman campaign of 1346. On landing at La Hogue he was knighted by his father, and took a prominent part in the whole of the campaign. He commanded the right wing of the English forces at Crecy, and, though hard pressed for a time by the French, took his full share in gaining the victory. Next year he was at the siege of Calais, and returned to England in October 1347 with his father. He was one of the original Knights of the Garter, and participated in his father's chivalrous adventures at Calais in 1349 and in the battle off Winchelsea in 1350. In September 1355 he was sent to Gascony at the head of an English army, having been appointed his father's lieutenant there in July. He was warmly welcomed by the Gascons, and at once led a foray through Armagnac and Languedoc. By November he had got as far as Narbonne, whence he returned to Bordeaux, where he kept his Christmas court. In August 1356 he started from Bergerac on another marauding expedition, this time in a northerly direction. He penetrated as far as the Loire, but was there compelled to retire before the superior forces of King John of France. On the 19th of September the two armies met in the battle of Poitiers, fought about 6 miles southeast of the city. It was the hardest-fought and most important battle of the Hundred Years' War, and Edward's victory was due both to the excellence of his tactical disposition of his forces and to the superior fighting capacity of his army. The flank march of the Captal de Buch, which decided the fate of the day, was of Edward's own devising, and the captivity of King John attested the completeness of his triumph. He treated his prisoner with almost ostentatious magnanimity, and took him to Bordeaux, from where they sailed to England in May 1357. On the 24th of that month he led his prisoner in triumph through the streets of London. In 1359 he took part in his father's invasion of northern France, and had a large share in the negotiations at Brétigny and Calais.
In October 1361 Edward married his cousin Joan, Countess of Kent (1328-1385), the daughter and heiress of Edmund of Woodstock, Earl of Kent, the younger son of King Edward I by his second wife Margaret of France. The lady, who enjoyed a great reputation for beauty, was in her thirty-third year, and the widow of Sir Thomas Holand, by whom she had had three children. Froissart says that the marriage was a love match, and that the king had no knowledge of it. However, Edward III approved of his son's choice, and in July 1362 handed over to him all his dominions in southern France, with the title of Prince of Aquitaine. In February 1363 Edward and Joan took ship for Gascony, which became his ordinary place of residence for the next eight years. He maintained a brilliant court at Bordeaux and Angoulême, and did his best to win the support of the Gascons. He was not, however, successful in winning over the greater nobles, who, with John, count of Armagnac, at their head, were dissatisfied with the separation from France, and looked with suspicion upon Edward's attempts to reform the administration as being likely to result in the curtailment of their feudal rights. Edward was better able to conciliate the towns, whose franchises he favored and whose trade he fostered, hoping that they would prove a counterpoise to the aristocracy. He kept the chief posts of the administration mainly in English hands, and never really identified himself with the local life and traditions of his principality. He succeeded in clearing Aquitaine of the free companies, and kept good peace for nearly six years.
In 1367 Pedro the Cruel, the deposed king of Castile, visited Edward at Bordeaux, and persuaded him to restore him to his throne by force. In February 1367 Edward led an army into Spain over the pass of Roncesvalles. After a difficult and dangerous march Edward reached the Ebro, and on the 3rd of April defeated Bertrand du Guesclin at Nájera, the last of his great victories. He then proceeded to Burgos, and restored Peter to the throne of Castile. He remained in Castile for four months, living principally at Valladolid. His army wasted away during the hot Spanish summer, and Edward himself contracted the beginnings of a mortal disease. In August 1367 Edward led the remnant of his troops back through the pass of Roncesvalles, and returned to Bordeaux early in September. He had exhausted all his resources on the Spanish expedition, and was forced to seek from the estates of Aquitaine extraordinary sources of supply. A hearth tax for five years was willingly granted to him, and generally paid. The greater barons, however, found in this impost a pretext for revolt. The count of Armagnac, who had already made a secret understanding with Charles V, appealed against the hearth tax to the parlement of Paris. Cited before this body in January 1369, Edward declared that he would answer at Paris with sixty thousand men behind him. War broke out again, and Edward III resumed the title of King of France. Thereupon Charles V declared that all the English possessions in France were forfeited, and before the end of 1369 all Aquitaine was in full revolt. With weak health and impaired resources, the Black Prince showed little activity in dealing with his insurgent subjects, or in warding off French invasion. Though too ill to ride on horseback, he insisted upon commanding his troops, and on the 19th of September 1370 won his last barren success, by capturing the revolted city of Limoges and putting the population to the sword. Early in 1371 he returned to England, leaving the impossible task of holding Gascony to his brother John of Gaunt. In August 1372 he joined his father in an abortive expedition to France, but contrary winds prevented their landing, and he now abandoned military life for good. In October he resigned his principality on the ground that he could not afford to retain any longer so expensive a charge. His health now rapidly declined, but he still followed politics with interest, and did what he could to support the constitutional opposition of the great ecclesiastics to the administration of John of Gaunt and the anti-clerical courtiers. His last public act was to inspire the attack on Lancaster's influence made by the Good Parliament in the spring of 1376. The famous parliament was still in session when he died at Westminster on the 8th of July. He was buried in the east end of Canterbury cathedral on the 29th of September, where his magnificent tomb, erected in accordance with the instructions in his will, may still be seen. By Joan, "the fair maid of Kent", who died on the 7th of August 1385, the Black Prince left an only son, afterwards King Richard II.
Father: King Edward III (King of England)
Mother: Philippa of Hainaut
Wife: Joan (his cousin, m. 1361, until his death, d. 7-Aug-1385)
Son: King Richard II (King of England)
NNDB MAPPER Create a map starting with Edward the Black Prince


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Reminisce
Sports Submissions
Mendocino County cannabis measures AI, AJ…
4-day school week's challenges
State to boost water deliveries
Mendocino County cannabis measures AI, AJ winning voter approval; voters saying 'no' to AF
By Erick O'donnell |
PUBLISHED: November 9, 2016 at 12:00 a.m. | UPDATED: August 23, 2018 at 12:00 a.m.
Voters on Tuesday night appeared to have soundly defeated a measure written by marijuana growers to regulate the cannabis industry in the county, opposing the initiative by 65.4 percent to 34.6 as of midnight, with 19.8 percent of ballots counted.
Separately, voters seemed likely to overwhelmingly approve a pair of measures drawn up by the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors to tax marijuana cultivation and use the proceeds for an array of county services, voting 64.9 percent to 35.1 percent to pass the tax and 70 percent to 30 percent to pass the advisory measure, as of midnight on Election Night.
Measure AF, which was failing Tuesday night, would have authorized the county to issue permits for the cultivation, manufacture of edibles and topical solutions, laboratory testing, dispensing, distributing, and transporting, legally sanctioning all nodes in the county's network of cannabis enterprises in line with the regulatory framework passed by the state last year.
It would have expanded growing in all land use zones including residential and increased the number of plants allowed. It would also have prohibited enforcement of its provisions by police or sheriff's deputies.
Under Measure AF, permit applicants would have been required to be a resident of at least two years and own at least 51 percent of their business, a provision intended to prevent a so-called "green rush" of investment from outside the county.
The Yes on Measure AF campaign argued that prospective entrepreneurs in the county's cannabis industry, which spokeswoman Sarah Bodnar called "the most important economic engine for the future of this county," need certainty regarding the regulatory status of their industry before they can invest and expand the industry. Passage of the measure would have ended what the campaign argued is de facto "prohibition," she said.
Opponents decried the lack of environmental review (which is not required for ballot initiatives) and the reduction in minimum distances required between cannabis businesses and parks, schools and other residences. Supervisor John McCowen predicted that the measure would put neighbors in conflict with one another and introduce noxious environmental effects that would be difficult to remedy.
The Board of Supervisors continues to work on its own regulatory framework for marijuana, building on the county's 9.31 program, which has been in place for several years.
"I believe that there was a wide understanding that this was special-interest legislation of the worst kind," said Mike Sweeney, a member of the No on Measure AF committee. "The people of Mendocino County accept commercial marijuana, but it must be regulated in the interest of the entire community."
Bodnar, the spokeswoman for the Measure AF campaign, could not be reached for comment on Election Night.
Measure AI will authorize the county to tax cannabis cultivation sites in unincorporated areas of the county at 2.5 percent, which the Board of Supervisors will be allowed to increase starting in 2020 in 2.5-percent increments up to a maximum 10-percent rate.
Measure AJ advises the board to spend the majority of revenue on enforcing marijuana regulations, providing mental-health services, repairing county roads, and providing fire and medical services.
Both Measures AI and AJ were receiving voter approval in early returns on Election Night.
Erick O'donnell
Caltrans: Failed culvert at Creekside Cabins not state's responsibility
Caltrans: Failed culvert at Creekside Cabins not state's responsibility
Bridge removed Friday at Creekside Cabins near Willits; not all residents evacuated
Willits resident Edie Ceccarelli, Earth's third-oldest-known living person, to celebrate 115th birthday
Willits resident Edie Ceccarelli, Earth's third-oldest-known living person, to celebrate 115th birthday
WPD: Willits business robbed of at least 40 pounds of marijuana
Mendocino County resident facing life-threatening emergency
Trial of Hopkins Fire defendant to be moved out of Mendocino County
'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest' opens Feb. 10 at Willits Community Theatre
'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest' opens Feb. 10 at Willits Community Theatre
Roadwork planned in Mendocino County


If we can somehow hold this level and break the downwards sloping (and then the upwards sloping) trendline , as well as several levels of EMA resistance (that have held for several weeks), then this may indicate a short-term trend reversal. In other words--ETH may no longer depreciate faster in dumps (or appreciate slower in pumps).
This typically indicates that buyers have begun buying/selling ETH at a rate equal to that of Bitcoin , and this has shown (but not always) to represent increasing confidence in the market.


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'The BFG' – Review
By Ellen A.
Roald Dahl's The BFG is a classic. It captured the imaginations of children at the time of its release in 1982, and has continued to do so every year since. But does Steven Spielberg's film adaptation have what it takes to do the same?
The film stars newcomer Ruby Barnhill as Sophie, a precocious orphan who is taken to Giant Country by BFG, played my Mark Rylance through motion capture. BFG is a kind hearted dreamcatcher who lives secluded from the much larger and nastier giants in Giant Country.
Spielberg's The BFG is a strange contradiction. The visual effects are breathtaking, and the film is infused with so much colour and texture that it's hard to believe the fictional land of Giant Country is just that; a fiction. But despite the vivid dreamscape the audience is treated to, the story is quite lacking. The film is plodding in its pacing and sparse in its conflict, and ultimately the dull story combined with the extraordinary visuals level out to create an average film.
Aside from the inciting act of the film – Sophie being whisked off by BFG – very little happens. Other giants are introduced and there is one point of conflict introduced at the beginning of the third act, but still, it all feels very perfunctory. Things unfold because they have to, and the film does very little to make us care about any of it. Everything is passive and detached, the stakes feel low and the wonderful performances aren't enough to inject life into the story.
RELATED: 'The Matrix Resurrections' Review - A High-Concept Snooze-Fest
The film's monotony is even more surprising when considering its pedigree. It's directed by one of the most well-known and respected filmmakers in the industry, it stars Oscar winner Mark Rylance in an excellent motion capture performance, and has an estimated budget of $140,000,000. The BFG seemed destined for success.
Perhaps the boredom experienced is due to the nature of The BFG being very 'kiddy'. The film lacks the wit and maturity that modern audiences have come to expect from the children's films made by Pixar, Disney, Dreamworks, etc. Or perhaps it's simply because the story lacks the fire and intrigue that the visuals promise to deliver.
This theatrical feature film has been in development for almost twenty-five years.
Ruby Barnhill
Adventure Films Fantasy Films Kids Films
'X-Men: Dark Phoenix' Review - An Extra-Ordinary Finale
If 'Zootopia' was a Crime Thriller - Mashup Video
'Mean Tweets' – Oscars Edition
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7 of the Best Examples of World Building in Movies
Ellen A.
Mogwai on the inside, gremlin on the outside. Deserted Island Movie Collection: The films of John Landis. Best Movie Snack: Maltesers
'Central Intelligence' – Review
'Ghostbusters 2' – Honest Trailer
Five of the Greatest Character Transformations Throughout Movie History
Interview with Robert Machoian, Director of 'The Killing of Two Lovers'
Besson's 'The Fifth Element' & 'Valerian': The State of Sci-Fi 20 Years Apart
'Tickled' – Review
'The Secret Life of Pets 2' Review - A Colourful and Wacky Ride for Kids
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Hilarious Honest Trailer for James Wan's Hit DC Blockbuster 'Aquaman'
Universal Pictures' 'The Mummy' Receives the Honest Trailer Treatment


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