David HARDESTY's excellent, detailed explanation of the new USA Patriot law and its likely impact on offshore banking and financial secrecy.
A convicted money laundering lawyer says the new anti-terrorist cash law won't work; Prudential Financial's head of corporate anti-money laundering compliance says the new law won't stop international terrorism, but it will "scare the hell out of tax evaders."
Barry SPITZ explains why he thinks new anti-secrecy restrictions will change private banking emphasis from secrecy to investment.
John PUGSLEY, comments on the nature of the world 'anti-terror war' and its sad implications.
The Swiss economy minister suggests a withholding tax on foreigners' earned interest is better than violating financial privacy.
US securities firms have almost no anti-money laundering controls; that's about to hange drastically. Customers now will be subjected to extensive personal background and financial checks.
WASHINGTON. The congressman from Texas explains one of the root causes of the current recession and what should be done about it.
Addressing the new FATF guidelines adopted last week in an emergency meeting, Daniel MITCHELL of the Heritage Foundation asks: "Is this going to work, or are we simply putting a heavy burden on the financial service industry and undermining law abiding people's privacy?"
The Financial Times thinks strict privacy-detroying "know your customer" policies are the answer to terrorist cash.
And the US government adds all major terror groups to its dirty cash hit list.
A chilling, new Cato Institute report: Systematic Federal Surveillance of Americans.
PC Magazine's current series of articles on computer and online privacy.
Of special interest, "9 Steps to Privacy."
Civil liberties groups denounce new face recognition scanners as ineffective and needlessly intrusive.
A pending US Congress ill, H.R. 3129,(Sec 144) would let US Customs agents search outbound mail for unreported monetary instruments.
The new anti-terror law provision may lead to a national ID card.
Secret meetings, secret decisions, secret searches.
Ron HOLLAND marshals history and facts, asking: "Has Switzerland Sold Out to Washington, London & Wall Street?"
REYKJAVIK, Iceland. This northern most nation lays official plans to become a world class offshore tax haven.
A new book claims "the end of the cold war merely set the parameters for the next struggle for survival".
HOW DO ISLAMIC "HAWALAS" OPERATE?
Exactly what goes on in the money transfer systems subjected to US police raids?. A graphic & article that explains.
On an 'emergency' basis, the US government will listen in on all talk between detained federal suspects and their lawyers.
The European Union wants power for secret surveillance of e-mails, Internet and phone usage without a warrant.
The Irish economy is the best in Europe because they refused to kowtow to EU orders, says Prime Minister Bertie Ahern.
Lebanese bankers say the US is unlikely to press its request for the freezing of assets held by Hizbollah, the Shia Muslim group.
The makers of anti-money laundering software used in 75 major banks admit their programs cannot find terrorist cash.
LONDON. At last the sanctimonious UK begins to admit it may be the money laundering capital of the world.
LONDON. Tony Blair declares a "public emergency", suspends human rights, will hold suspects indefinitely without charges. Minister says concerns about liberty are "airy, fairy."
VANCOUVER. Canada's 81,000 lawyers should not be government informers, so leading attorneys sue to block a law that does just that.
WASHINGTON. A government wish list of techno-goodies to spy on you.
CULLY, Switzerland. Freezing assets here is easy. Thawing out assets is an entirely different story.
This once secretive principality wants to world to know it is now clean.
HONG KONG is found to be the freest economy in the world for the 8th straight year.
But HK also boosts its power to seize cash and assets.
The head of the EU wants it to be a super power, but not everyone agrees.
And the EU wants total eavesdropping power over the Internet.
There has been a huge increase in suspected money laundering and tax evasion cases reported since the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks.
Sales of gold as an investment soared 400% after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
And a multi-billion dollar merger is about to create the world's number one gold mining company.
New US anti-terrorist laws can be used for routine criminal investigations unrelated to terrorism.
The Bush administration ignores lawmakers as it makes its own laws.
Bush orders military tribunals to replace US courts.
LONDON. Labour's darling is turning the UK into a police state.
And Amnesty International denounces UK threats to freedom.
Last Friday we reported the OECD has again put off its phony sanctions deadline aimed at tax havens.
The Heritage Foundation's Daniel MITCHELL explains why the OECD's deadline extension definitely does not mean anyone can relax.
Dan Mitchell exposes the real threat of IRS regulations that would drive foreign investors from America.
A federal bankruptcy judge orders a Bahamas trust to repatriate funds.
The top Swiss banker defends his nation against tax evasion charges, reaffirms bank and financial secrecy, pledges cooperation with US.
REYKJAVIK. A 10-year turnaround brought domestic prosperity. Now Iceland plans a new offshore financial and privacy haven.
Experts agree the new US dirty cash police task force is unlikely to succeed, except in destroying financial privacy.
And the sanctimonious United States is estimated to be home to 46% of all world banking and financial crimes.
Dave BARRY exposes a little noted offshore scandal.
US industry's recession is the longest since the Great Depression of the 1930s, and the new worry is deflation.
Experts suggest new corporate combinations of gold mining companies could result in a major upturn in the price of gold.
LIMASSOL, Cyprus. A legitimate financial reporter is caught up by nervous world money laundering laws, US and otherwise.
Investing, travel, finances, all worth a look, Forbes magazine's updated "Best of the Web" site lists.
Across Europe, in the UK and the US the anti-terror excuse is used to give police vast new powers and destroy liberty. But does anyone care?
Why does the United States elicit such extreme hatred in some parts of the world? Is it the American "pursuit of happiness"?
Said he: "We must remember our heritage, who we are, what we are, and how this nation, this island of freedom, came into being."
The anti-terror demand to "do something" fuels the idea of a national identification card for every US person.
But U.S. Rep. Ron PAUL (R-Tex) explains why this would be the ultimate insult to Americans and harm freedom and liberty.
The military accuses, tries, convicts and no appeal allowed.
Haven nations say OECD still is dictatorial and high handed.
A new Financial Times survey gives an excellent analysis of where the Swiss banking and financial services industry stands today.
They offer foreign clients anonymity and no taxes, attracting the wealthy who may want to evade taxes in their own countries.
A top HONG KONG official decries envy of the rich, says free market spreads wealth to all.
An excellent survey of radical new US banking and anti-money laundering laws and the costs in liberty.
Stock brokers soon must rat on 'suspicious' clients.
Politicians pass laws, then reality bites.
A list in pdf file form of those caught in the US terror asset freeze.
PURSUE OIL OR BIN LADEN?
Has the US gone easy on Arab terrorists because of petroleum needs?
So-called "tax protesters" are getting the shaft from U.S. courts.
They cannot see into the future, no matter what they claim.
The Bush anti-terrorist law forces business to spy on customers.
And the new law also enormously increases police powers.
Sweeping powers demanded by the US and UK governments.
Is the American police state already in place?
New technologies can destroy human privacy and government exploits this situation under cover of anti-terrorism.
Are terrorism and war making President Bush a virtual dictator?
The President defends his order creating military tribunals.
But is it a radical curb on constitutional rights?
Worried about identity theft? Try taking these precautions.
RIGA. To attract offshore business, business taxes cut to the bone.
It claims it will be another Hong Kong, with tax breaks.
But no more immigration. How does that work?
GOLD ON THE WAY UP?
Having called the top of the gold market 22 years ago, a gold bug thinks he has found the bottom.
After US terror attacks, here's how to allocate your assets.
It may threaten Switzerland's banking secrecy and could mean trouble for Swiss banks with wealthy clients.
IRS lawyer convicted of tax evasion, tax advisors arrested in tax scams.
$45 billion last year saved with offshore affiliates.
Privacy issues for companies, workers, customers.
Earth orbiting listening posts are on active duty in the war on terrorism and they could be watching you too.
FBI software will secretly be installed over the Internet as a trojan horse to record every keystroke on your computer.
A new international order may not have emerged after Sept. 11, but the outlines of a new world are emerging.
WASHINGTON. Civil liberties and privacy concerns raised about a possible government-banks data spy system.
"TAX HARMONY" DRIVE HURTS U.S.A.
Heritage Foundation's Dan MITCHELL explains why the OECD's 'tax harmonization' drive threatens the US economy.
Fighting dirty cash gets headlines but few victories.
The U.S. is the sexual super power of the world. Greeks second.
Harry BROWNE, former US presidential candidate, asks what is happening to America.
Police already are using new anti-terrorism powers to monitor cable modem users without obtaining a search warrant.
A leading US software maker is accused of helping feds snoop.
OTTAWA. Canadian government smothers debate on terror bill.


North Shire know how important your wedding is and part of that is getting away with the girls for your Hen weekend. Why have a night out on the town you can't remember when you can have a weekend break away in the beautiful North York Moors National Park? We can provide magical accommodations and a relaxed venue for you all to unwind.
The Shire can accommodate up to around 30 'clucky' ladies but you are welcome to bring tents and tourers with you and we can also organise providing vintage caravans and large furnished Bell tents too.
We provide fire pits for sitting round on an evening to toast marshmallows or wrap yourself in a blanket with a glass of something nice. While you stay we can also provide various classes including yoga or tai chi meditation and you can also book a massage too.
The accommodations range from the larger Story book cottage and the Hobbit house to Shepherds huts and Gypsy caravans all heated and cosy. There are onsite showers and toilets and your welcome to use the grounds as you wish and bring in your own marquees and gazebos if you wish.
Listen up hens! You can also hire hot tubs. These have to be booked in advance and are on a 2 night or more basis. Please get in touch to confirm costs.
We have confirmed a new great business relationship with Sarah muir from the archers cookery school who can provide a number of bespoke courses for hen gatherings staying at the shire starting with your very own afternoon " Bake off " and finishing with afternoon tea and cakes to Cocktails and canapés and 3 course evening meal.
Please note for private parties the shire must be booked as a whole.
The cost is £50 per person per night if you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.


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Journalist & Bestselling Author; Her Books Include "Secrets of the Tomb: Skull and Bones, the Ivy League, and the Hidden Paths of Power"
Alexandra Robbins, a 28-year-old literary phenom who has been called the spokesperson for her generation, has landed on the New York Times bestseller lists with multiple books for good reason: she has a knack for predicting the Next Big Thing and then hitting the right nerves. She regularly appears on national television, including shows such as 60 Minutes, The Today Show, Oprah, and The View, and has written for several publications, including Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, Atlantic Monthly, Cosmopolitan and The Washington Post.
Hailed by the media as "an excellent stylist and a first-rate mind," "a media celebrity," and "a bold new voice," Robbins is a lively award-winning speaker who lectures passionately on a number of topics. Her expertise on the issues plaguing young people in American society is unparalleled and consistently in high-demand. Perfect for a variety of audiences, Robbins uses her charm and intelligence to give an engaging and informative presentation.
Robbins' latest book, Conquering Your Quarterlife Crisis, the follow-up to Quarterlife Crisis, is the go-to guide for young adults in their late teens through late 30s, and for their parents, relatives, friends and advisers. Like its accompanying lecture, Conquering Your Quarterlife Crisis offers advice, tips, strategies, and overnight solutions to conquer various specific issues and questions such as "What if I don't know what I want?" "When do I let go of my dream?" "How do I know if I'm dating 'The One'?" and "How do I weigh doing something I love versus making enough money?"
Pledged: The Secret Life of Sororities, Robbins' fast-paced, undercover account of sorority life, blew the lid off the intriguing world of the mainstream Greek system and propelled her to household-name status at universities nationwide. Her pro-Greek lecture about sororities both unearths secrets and scandals of Greek life for non-Greeks, and educates Greeks on how to improve their reputation and experiences.<
Robbins' Secrets of the Tomb: Skull and Bones, the Ivy League, and the Hidden Paths of Power remains the definitive book on the super-elite secret society to which both George W. Bush and John Kerry belong. A spectacular feat of investigative reporting, Secrets of the Tomb is more than just an exposé of the inner workings of one of the nation's most secretive and powerful societies - it is also a provocative exploration of our collective obsession with conspiracy and connection.
Robbins' first book, Quarterlife Crisis, was a global sensation that explored the difficulties of leaving college and entering the "real world." The first self-help book aimed at this age group and addressing this issue, Quarterlife Crisis showed a generation of modern twentysomethings that they were not alone in their confusion and anxiety about life after college. The point of Quarterlife Crisis was to identify the problems of 18-39-year olds; the point of Conquering Your Quarterlife Crisis is to solve them.
Alexandra Robbins - YouTube
You've Got Alexandra Robbins on How Outsiders Win - YouTube
The Pressure to Succeed
a lecture for high school and middle school students, parents, teachers, and communities about calming down during the schooling years
How to Figure Out What to do With Your Life
a lecture for college students and young adults
"The Secrets of Popularity: Being Excluded Doesn't Mean Anything's Wrong With You": a lecture for high school and middle school students, parents, teachers, and communities about social pressures
Pledged and related Greek issues
Stress, pressure, and alcohol awareness
The Quarterlife Crisis and other college and twentysomething issues
Secrets of the Tomb, Skull and Bones
Journalism, writing, and publishing
Other lecture and seminar topics available upon request
Television Personalities, Journalism, Authors, Novelists,
The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth: Popularity, Quirk Theory, and Why Outsiders Thrive After High School
The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids
Pledged: The Secret Life of Sororities
Conquering Your Quarterlife Crisis: Advice from Twentysomethings Who Have Been There and Survived (Perigee Book)
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Does anyone have a 4P 1R Eb they are looking to part with? Please email me at brileydouglas@yahoo.com if so.
email sent a few days ago... i think?
I though about it, but the ergonomics don't work for me. The very straight/vertical valve set works best for me.


Named for the unique collection of original John Clymer Western prints, this 368 square foot (23x16) room is our most intimate event space.
Stunning features such as custom black walnut tables, millwork and custom leaded glasswork are highlighted by 1921 Silver Dollars. The local's favorite spot for special occassions private dinners and meetings.


Some Estate Agents believe that all their vendors want is an offer on their home, others think that the job is done when the property appears on a property portal and others think their job is over once the property has exchanged contracts.On average a home owner will move every seven years, so by the time they come to sell again they will have forgotten the whole process (except maybe the bad things that happened to them). An Estate Agent – in theory (depending on how busy their office is) can go through the whole sales process around 200 times a year and what is routine for them, is not routine for a vendor.
I always asked the question "What would you like me to do for you?" to every vendor and for every thousand times I asked, I got a thousand "Sell my house please", followed by a laugh, why? Because that's what vendors instruct Estate Agents to do. My second question was always "May I explain what I can do for you?" and in 25 years I have never had a vendor say "No" and after 45 minutes to an hour the vendor knew exactly why they had instructed me to sell their home.
Nearly all Estate Agents work in different ways, but every Vendor is the same – They want to get on with their daily lives, dealing with their job, enjoying time with family and friends, whilst their chosen agent deals with possibly the biggest transaction they will make for the next seven years. The vendor doesn't care that the agent has 40 other property sales going through at the same time, they want the agents empathy, their time and above all their help.
If the agent has done their job on instruction, the vendor will be basically aware of the sales process; marketing to offer, agreed offer to sales progression and exchange to completion. Obviously the agent can not go through every single pitfall that may arise, this would not only take an extraordinary amount of time but probably leave the vendor in a state of depression! Instead, knowing that the vendor has some knowledge it is the agents responsibility to inform and assist at each stage of the process, by being proactive the agent will spot anything untoward and be in a position to explain to the vendor what may happen.
Most vendors will have a friend or colleague that has a friend, who knew a friend who had a torrid time with an agent, by keeping the vendor informed at every stage, by being a step ahead of the process and by giving each individual vendor exactly what they require every agent can avoid being "That" agent.
So what does every vendor want – Simply put ….. Everything that they require.


text:
MT. RIDGE FARMS
589 Brysonia-Wenksville Rd
Biglerville, PA 17307
Premier Honeycrisp
Farms News
Founded on Our Farm
A new strain ripens three weeks earlier than the standard Honeycrisp.
It was a glorious day in August of 2010 when Steve Slaybaugh and his wife found ripe Honeycrisp apples in their family orchard in Pennsylvania. It was August 11, and the apples on one tree were ripe. Steve noticed this was three weeks early.
"Why is the tree ripe?" Slaybaugh recalls saying this to his wife, who was with him on a four-wheeler looking over the crop. Then they tasted it. "It's ripe! It's ready to be picked," he said.
Both quite excited about it, they took an apple home for their son Dave to taste. After the family tasted the apple they new they had found something special. And then began the next big steps of turing this amazing find into a product they could be reproduced and sold across the world.
Premier Honeycrisp discovered by Steve and Dave Slaybaugh of Mt. Ridge Farms in Adams County, PA, is a complete tree sport of Honeycrisp that matures three weeks earlier. From what has been observed over several fruiting seasons, Premier Honeycrisp shares many of the same attributes of the original honeycrisp.
Promoting the New Find
The Slaybaugh's teamed up to show a group of growers and packers what the apple looks like—ripe on the trees, at four locations, on three days, August 13-15.
"We had it tested and it's a true Honey," Slaybaugh said, "no less, all the qualities of a regular Honeycrisp. There may be less breakdown, at least so far for us."
"For the five years we have observed it, it has ripened 20 or 21 days before Honeycrisp,"... "For us in Adams County, Pennsylvania, that's been August 12 to 16."
The variety has been identified up until now as DAS 10, which stands for Dave's initials and the arbitrary number 10. It is being released under the trade name Premier Honeycrisp (DAS 10 Cltv) and has been patented.
For five years it was observed, and overall it ripened 20 or 21 days before Honeycrisp.
Like Us on Social Media
©2017 by Mt. Ridge Farms. Proudly created with Wix.com


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Location: Outer Banks, NC
by REPO Man Tue Mar 06, 2018 10:08 am
Ren and Stimpy in Stimpy's Invention for Genesis. Used to rent this all the time as a kid. Literally blew threw it in about an hour at most. Also WOW, this game was MUCH better as a kid.
Join the Disney Movie Club!
by ESauced Tue Mar 06, 2018 9:48 pm
REPO Man wrote: Ren and Stimpy in Stimpy's Invention for Genesis. Used to rent this all the time as a kid. Literally blew threw it in about an hour at most. Also WOW, this game was MUCH better as a kid.
Haha. Yeah I loved that game as a kid. As an adult...less so. I think the mechanics are pretty cool—all the unique moves that you have—but the execution is awful.
by dsheinem Tue Mar 06, 2018 11:25 pm
War of the Monsters -PS2 *new*
This is a fantastic little game that is probably amongst the best "be a giant monster" games that I've played. It feels like an evolution of something like SNK's "King of the Monsters" and does a lot of what that game does only better, in 3D, with stylish/servicable graphics. I'd love to see how well it works for vs play at some point...and apparently there's a dodgeball mode that can be unlocked!
by ElkinFencer10 Wed Mar 07, 2018 9:27 am
dsheinem wrote: War of the Monsters -PS2 *new*
Dude. I LOVE this game. I spent literally hundreds of hours in middle school and high school playing this game with one of my friends in the mountains while listening to Linkin Park's first two studio albums on repeat. No fighting game as memories as fond for me as this one.
marurun
by marurun Wed Mar 07, 2018 11:04 am
ElkinFencer10 wrote: while listening to Linkin Park's first two studio albums on repeat
I am so sorry to hear about this dark time in your life. I hope you have managed to recover and finally embrace daylight again.
B/S/T thread
My Classic Games Collection
My Steam Profile
The PC Engine Software Bible Forum, with Shoutbox chat - the new Internet home for PC Engine fandom.
by dsheinem Wed Mar 07, 2018 11:05 am
ElkinFencer10 wrote:
Awesome! I played through the campaign as Togera. Good choice?
by ElkinFencer10 Wed Mar 07, 2018 12:12 pm
dsheinem wrote: Awesome! I played through the campaign as Togera. Good choice?
Yeah man, he's my second favorite. My favorite is Ultra-V, although Magmo is a close #3 to Togera.
by MrPopo Thu Mar 08, 2018 2:54 am
From the makers of FTL comes a strategy puzzle game that is just as addictive, if not moreso, than FTL. The basic premise of the game is that a horde of alien locusts called the Vek have invaded Earth and overrun it. In desperation, they take a page from Terminator to send back one elite pilot to try and do a better job in the next timeline. This is where things pick up. You need to lead your squad of three mechs to fight back against the Vek and destroy their hive before they breed sufficient numbers to overwhelm humanity.
You start the game with access to one squad, which is an all rounder squad. As you progress you unlock more squads, each specialized in a different form of combat. Just like FTL and its different ships, playing different squads requires you to approach things in a different way, and it helps keep things fresh. You also have the option of picking a random squad (with it either being vaguely balanced or completely random) or creating a custom squad. You'll need to do all of these if you want to hunt the achievements and unlock all the squads (including the secret squad for getting every achievement).
The basic gameplay is that you drop onto a small grid map and you need to survive four turns. The Vek will try to either trash your mechs or attack buildings; when destroyed these buildings reduce your power level. When your power reaches zero then the machine that is keeping the Vek in check fails and you get swarmed; game over. Each map also has one or more sub objectives; these give you resources when completed (either extra power or currency to upgrade your squad at the end of an island). The game is divided into four islands, and you can trigger the end game sequence after doing just two of them. Going further gives you more rewards but also makes the enemies harder, so there's a risk reward to it.
Now, the turn-by-turn combat is where this game really gets interesting. When the enemy takes its turn it moves all of its units around and then sets up its attacks. You then are given the opportunity to respond; once you end turn the enemy attacks will go off. You have several options of what to do; the most basic is to kill enemies by dealing enough damage. But this game is heavily based on movement and positioning. If you shove a Vek their attack will stay aimed at the same relative square, which means you can do things like have them attack an empty square, or another Vek. Non-boss walking Vek can't swim, so you can push them into the drink for a free kill. If one unit is pushed into another then both units take damage; same if you push one unit into a structure or mountain. If a unit is standing on top of a hole that more Vek will burrow out of next turn the reinforcement is blocked and the blocking unit takes damage. And finally, there are frequently environmental effects that you can lure enemies into which take effect at the start of the turn. All of this is where the game starts to approach more of a puzzle scenario, rather than a straight combat strategy. You want to think about how you sequence your moves and how you can set things up so that when the enemies take their turn they do as little damage as possible.
Of course, you will fail now and again. If you game over you are given the option to send one of your pilots back in time to try again. This pilot will keep all of their experience, which gives you a leg up on the next run. It's never anything game breaking, as each pilot still has their signature skill available from the start. But it's nice to jump start with an extra point of energy available for your weapon upgrades or some extra movement. You also have the option of bailing out of a timeline early, say, if you realize that you have no way of avoiding having your best pilot killed next turn (if a mech is downed the pilot is killed and AI will take it over next map; AI doesn't get skills).
A run takes between half an hour to an hour, depending on how many islands you do. And it's rare that a run dies super early; generally you'll have at least one island under your belt before you get overwhelmed and lose power to your grid. So the game makes for quick bits of play here and there, and the various squads ad a lot of variety. It's quite addictive, and I still have to do a run with the secret squad tomorrow.
by BoneSnapDeez Thu Mar 08, 2018 9:45 pm
Otenba Becky no Daibouken (hilariously translated as Tomboyish Becky's Large Adventure) is an obscure MSX exclusive, released back in 1983. The developer, MIA, seems to have developed for the MSX exclusively, and apparently ceased production after 1984. Becky is notable for being one of the earliest Japanese games to feature a female protagonist. While I lack the instruction booklet, I've been able to find a plot synopsis online: twelve-year-old Becky sneaks into a mansion and while running about she manages to irritate the malicious space aliens that inhabit it. I hate it when that happens.
The game is a scaffolded "ladder" platformer, but Becky can't jump. She defeats enemies by trapping them in holes she digs along the pathways. Sound familiar? Comparisons to Lode Runner may immediately jump to mind, but in actuality Becky is clearly aping Universal's Space Panic, an unheralded 1980 arcade title that is often credited with being the first of its genre.
Stages are single-screen, with a seemingly random ladder layout presented each time. Unfortunately, no layout is inherently more or less interesting or challenging than another, and all can be viewed within a few play sessions. Only the arrow keys and space bar are used, with the space bar assigned to digging. Becky differs from Space Panic (and Lode Runner, for that matter) when it comes to said digging. While the heroes of the aforementioned classics can dig holes to either side of whereupon they stand, Becky isn't especially bright and instead digs a hole directly below her feet, dropping her to the floor below. This adds an additional element to the gameplay, the element of annoyance. Once an enemy is trapped in a hole (suspended, really) Becky must make her way back up to where the enemy rests and walk over it. If she can't do this within an allotted time frame, the enemy regains composure. Foes that have been trampled by the Beckz drop down and transform into apples. When she's had her fill of produce, the mischievous middle-schooler moves ahead to the next stage.
After a few boards are completed there's no reason to continue playing. There's no "end" in sight as far as I can tell, and while the level counter likely rolls over after 99 every possible stage and enemy configuration is seen well before that happens. Graphics are strictly utilitarian, and the "soundtrack" is a single annoyingly chirpy tune looping endlessly. Enemy sprites look and move like utter garbage. Classic MSX choppiness. To make matters worse, enemy sprites often overlap each other, and oftentimes when I thought I was taking out a single enemy another one popped out from behind it.
With its hidden villains and janky "drop down" mechanic, Otenba Becky no Daibouken is utterly unimpressive. While not a horrendous title by any stretch, it fails to stand out among the burgeoning early-80s platforming scene. As a fan of ancient Japanese obscurities, I managed to get a couple of chuckles out of the Becky experience, but was ultimately left wishing I was playing the game's more illustrious mentor instead.
by Flake Fri Mar 09, 2018 10:01 am
[quote="Flake"]January:
Yakuza Kiwami (PS4)
Batman: The Telltale Series (PS4)
Super Mario Odyssey (Switch)
Mario vs Donkey Kong: Minis March Again (DSi ware)
Roundabout (PS4)
Pocket Fighter (PSX)
Double Dragon Neon (PS3)
Batman Arkham VR(PSVR)
Dynasty Warriors Gundam Reborn (PS4)
Dynasty Warriors Gundam Reborn has been sitting on my PS3's harddrive, unplayed, for a very long time now. I was initially discouraged by the superficial differences between it and DW Gundam 3 like the shift away from cel shading, the somewhat smaller models to achieve larger on screen character counts, the UI, etc.
What was I thinking? Elkin and I tackled this game in parallel and that provided me with extra motivation to focus on it and I am glad I did. This game is much more akin to Hyrule Warriors than the older style DW games. The difficulty across most levels is lowered, the size of the environments is smaller, and the model count is increased dramatically. The end result is a power fantasy where you ravage thousands of enemies in a minute, constantly unlocking new items and upgrades, and revel in constant explosions. It's a great stress reliever.
The music is, again, not the licensed sound track from the actual shows but it still very good. There is also an ton of content so even though I have 'beat' it, I am not done with it.
Bayonetta (Switch)
Bayonetta for the Switch is a lot of fun. I had previously purchased it on the WiiU but the load times killed the experience for me. On Switch, the game loads quickly (almost seamlessly within levels) and there is next to no slow down. Whereas the WiiU release was a step above the original Xbox360, so to is the Switch version over the WiiU.
As for the game itself, I enjoyed the fuck out of the setting. I also liked how unapologetically sexual and female the protagonist is. It is a great change of pace to have a female lead that is not asking for any fucking help from anyone and I wish that more game designers could achieve this same balance.
Also - thank god Easy mode is a thing on this game. I was able to make it until the last two chapters on Normal but everything went all teacup on me at the end. I am sure high level players can make this game into an artform but I was struggling to get by at some points. It never felt unfair though - another sign of good game design.
The PSTV is amazing.
Nintendo ID: Mecha_Flake
PS Network: jace-flake
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Sophie Theen is Chief People Officer, Oakam (Marea Britanie), Talent and Culture in Startups; Hypergrowth; Speaker; Mentor; Woman in Fintech Powerlist; Tech & Rising Star finalist '19 (Marea Britanie).
As the VP of People in Pollen, Sophie's aim was to shift cultural paradigms within organisations and to champion diversity and equality using structured, disruptive thinking. Pre Pollen, she's led recruitment projects with Ford, General Motors and IBM, before shifting her passion and focus to setting up the future of HR in Fintech Startups like Revolut & 11:FS. She is a regular mentor and career coach in the startup community. A prolific writer on Diversity, Sophie also runs an HR community in Slack, Work Experience Programs for young women and as a People Advisor to new Founders of FinTech startups in London.
Sophie: I started out my career in Australia, where I was a short-lived engineer. Although I loved the industry, I knew it wasn't what I wanted to do for the rest of my life…
While I was there, I went to a graduate networking event where I met the founder of a company in their early stages. He suggested that I try recruitment, and it made sense to stay in an industry I loved whilst trying something different.
As I was still 'a fresh grad', it made sense to work with my fellow recent grads, and joining the company as a graduate recruitment manager was very fulfilling. I was comfortable with the industry and it quickly taught me the importance of doing something I love. Since then I have worked with corporates in their Recruitment team before I eventually moved to join the start up world leading Talent and HR teams globally.
Sophie: AI and automation will be common in most HR practices and processes. This means that HR will finally be as efficient as any other functions in a company which is something we have been looking forward to. Personally as well, I've been implementing a different approach to traditional performance management in startups and I think the trend that will take over this decade will be the focus on reinventing performance management.
Sophie: The leaders I look up to are those who created a following of their ways of working and ways of behaving. To me, that's very important because while my ambition isn't to be "them" but to be a closer version of them in the world and work that I do. I think that's the best kind of leaders because you end up learning from their mistakes, and success, not who they are directly.
What do you consider to be the employee benefits that could drive the highest employee motivation/satisfaction/retention/engagement?
Sophie: Flexibility in your work, which means it's either remote working or flexibility on work hours. Studies have shown that intrinsic motivators drives high performance cultures and that's where we need to focus on providing to our employees. The freedom to work anywhere and whenever could really be a game changer in ensuring the focus is outcome and results focused, rather than physical presence which in most times mean nothing to a company.


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After-hours drinking hole a haven for Tower of London's Beefeaters
By Estelle Shirbon
LONDON (Reuters) - After the hordes of tourists with their cameras and selfie sticks depart from the Tower of London every evening, a private drinking hole for Beefeaters comes to life within the walls of the royal fortress.
Officially called Yeoman Warders and instantly recognizable with their distinctive hats and uniforms, the 37 Beefeaters live with their families inside the fortified complex which houses the Crown Jewels, glittering symbol of the British monarchy.
While living in a castle on the bank of the Thames has a unique cachet, Beefeaters share their home with close to 3 million visitors a year and spend much of their time conducting tours, answering questions and posing for photographs.
After the daily hubbub fades, they can change out of their uniforms and head for a quiet drink at the Yeoman Warders' Club, their own private bar in a discreet corner of the sprawling fortress - a much-needed respite.
"There are certainly two sides to life here at the Tower," club chairman John Donald, who has been a Beefeater for 3-1/2 years, said.
"When we are here looking after the general public, we're very much in the public domain, very, very busy answering lots of questions. And then come 6 o'clock it becomes our own little village again, where as a community we can relax and enjoy ourselves."
That relaxation could take the form of a pint of Beefeater Bitter, a beer made by Marston's Brewery in Staffordshire, central England, and available only in the Yeoman Warders' Club.
The brewery also produces a craft lager called Yeoman 1485 also only available in the private bar. Both drinks are "very lovely", Donald said.
"MAY YOU NEVER DIE A YEOMAN WARDER"
In keeping with the history of the Tower of London, which has served many purposes over the centuries from royal residence to the prison where two of King Henry VIII's wives were beheaded, the club is decorated with unusual objects.
Among them is a plaque that reads "SITE OF SCAFFOLD" - kept as a souvenir after it was removed from the site where executions took place. For good measure, the Yeoman Gaoler's axe hangs just above it, a ghoulish reminder of the gruesome past.
Other memorabilia includes a framed document bearing the signature of Rudolf Hess. The Nazi politician was briefly imprisoned at the Tower in 1941 after being caught in Scotland during a failed secret peace mission. He was one of the last prominent people to be held prisoner there.
On a more cheerful note, the bar also boasts glass cases displaying objects linked to the Beefeaters' colorful traditions.
There are silver tankards used by new Beefeaters to have a drink of port after their formal swearing-in ceremonies while their colleagues proffer the toast: "May you never die a Yeoman Warder".
That dates back to a time when if they retired from the corps, Beefeaters could sell the job to someone else, but if they died while in office the Constable of the Tower would pocket the money instead. That system no longer exists.
Another glass case displays one of the Beefeaters' scarlet state dress uniforms, known to gin lovers around the world from the labels on bottles of Beefeater Gin, but now worn only on special occasions such as Queen Elizabeth's birthday.
In their day-to-day duties, Beefeaters now wear a dark blue and red "undress" uniform, while at the private club they can relax in everyday clothes.
Donald appeared content for the elaborate state dress uniform, with its heavy tunic, knee-breeches and tight white neck ruff, to be in a glass case.
"The state dress, we only wear for a couple of days a year and only for a couple of hours at a time, so we kind of grin and bear it," he said.
Editing by Louise Ireland


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Republished on: August 2, 2013
Giving Us What For
Saint Alphonsus de Liguori was giving me "what for" in July of 2008 as I read each of the fifty-three sermons he wrote during the time that he was the Bishop of Saint Agatha dei Goti between 1762 and 1775. No matter the fact that there had been a passage of time of over three hundred forty years since these sermons were composed, I felt the biting sting of his rebukes and the firm love of the Divine Redeemer, Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, that prompted him to have such great, burning zeal for the salvation of souls as a tenderly devoted client of the Mother of God. The Sunday Sermons of Saint Alphonsus de Liguori are but a small part of the zealous work that he performed as a priest and as a bishop for the poor and the homeless of the Kingdom of Naples. They are but a small part of his body of writing, which includes such great volumes as The Glories of Mary and Preparation for Death, among many others. However, the Sunday Sermons of Saint Alphonsus de Liguori speak very plainly to us in our own day, explaining the Faith and our obligations to quite our tepidity and worldliness in no uncertain terms.
Although each of the fifty-three Sunday sermons is online at the "Save Thy Souls" section of Traditional Catholic Sermons.org, I thought it useful and appropriate on this great saint and Doctor the Church's feast day to provide a few written excerpts from some of the sermons to demonstrate that Saint Alphonsus de Liguori, the Patron Saint of Moral Theologians and the Founder of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, the Redemptorist Fathers, a tireless worker in behalf of the poor and downtrodden, a priest and a bishop and a scholar who combated the hideous heresy of Jansenism and who was sought after for spiritual counsel by Dominicans and Franciscans and Jesuits, is most correct to give us "what for" some three hundred eleven years after his death on August 1, 1797.
The sermon written for the First Sunday in Advent contains some very powerful admonitions to us to consider the General Judgment of the Living and the Dead each and every day our lives (and yes, I did omit most of the Latin phrases in my recording; although I can pray the Rosary in Latin and can sing with decent pronunciation, my reading out loud of Latin words that I do not normally speak is halting to the point of absolute embarrassment!):
Worldlings now regard as fools the saints, who led mortified and humble lives; but then they shall confess their own folly, and say: "We fools esteemed their life madness, and their end without honor. Behold how they they are numbered among the children of God, and their lot is among the saints"--Wis., v. 4, 5. In this world, the rich and the noble are called happy; but true happiness consists in a life of sanctity. Rejoice, ye souls who live in tribulation; "your sorrow shall be turned into joy"--John, xvi. 20. In the valley of Josaphat you shall be seated on thrones of glory.
But the reprobate, like goats destined for the slaughter, shall be placed on the left, to await their last condemnation "Judici tempus", says Saint Chrysostom, "misericordiam non recipit". On the day of judgment, there is no hope of mercy for poor sinners. "Magna", says St. Augustine, "jam est poena peccati metum et memoriam divini perdidisse judicii"--serm. xx, de Temp. The greatest punishment of sin in those who live in enmity with God, is to lose the fear and remembrance of the divine judgment. Continue, continue. says the Apostle, to live obstinately in sin; but in proportion to your obstinacy, you shall have accumulated for the day of judgment a treasure of the wrath of God. "But according to thy hardness and impenitent heart, thou treasurest up to thyself wrath against the day of wrath"--Rom., ii. 5.
Then sinners will not be able to hide themselves; but, with insufferable pain, they shall be compelled to appear in judgment. "To lie hid", says St. Anselm, "will be impossible--to appear will be intolerable." The devils will perform their office of accusers, and as St. Augustine says, will say to the Judge: "Most just God, declare him to be mine, who was unwilling to be yours". The witnesses against the wicked shall be, first, their own conscience--"Their conscience bearing witness to them"--Rom., ii. 15; secondly, the very walls of the house in which they sinned shall cry out against them--"The stone shall cry out of the wall"--Hab., ii. 11; thirdly, the Judge himself will say--"I am the judge and the witness, saith the Lord:--Jer., xxix. 23. Hence, according to St. Augustine, "He who is now the witness of your life, shall be the judge of your cause"--lib. x. de Chrod., c. ii. To Christians particularly he will say: "Wo to thee Corazain, wo to thee Bethsaida; for in in Tyre and Sidon had been wrought the miracles that have been wrought in you, they had long ago done penance in sackcloth and ashes"--Matt., xi. 21. Christians, he will say, if the graces which I have bestowed upon ou had been given to th Turks or to the Pagans, they would have done penance for their sins; but you have ceased to sin only with your death. He shall then manifest to all men their most hidden crimes. "I will discover thy shame to they face"--Nahum., iii. 5. He will expose to view all their secret impurities, injustices, and cruelties. "I will set all they abominations against thee"--Ezech., vii. 3. Each of the damned shall carry his sins written on his forehead.
What excuses can save the wicked on that day? Ah! they can offer no excuses. "All iniquity shall stop her mouth"--Ps., cvi. 42. Their very sins shall close the mouth of the reprobate, so that they will have not courage to excuse themselves. They shall pronounce their own condemnation.
Third point. Sentence of the elect, and of the reprobate.
St. Bernard says, that the sentence of the elect, and their destiny to eternal glory, shall be first declared, that the pains of the reprobate may be increased by the sight of what they lost. "Prius pronunciabitur sententia electis, ut acrius (reprobi) doleant videntes quid amiserint"--ser. viii. in Ps. xc. Jesus Christ, then, shall first turn to the elect, and with a serene countenance shall say: "Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world"--Matt., xxv 34. He will then bless all the tears shed through sorrow for their sins, and all their good works, their prayers, mortifications, and communions, above all, he will bless for them the pains of his passion, and the blood shed for their salvation. And, after these benedictions, the elect, singing alleluias, shall enter Paradise to praise and love God for all eternity.
The Judge shall then turn to the reprobate, and shall pronounce the sentence of their condemnation in these words: "Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire"--Matt., xxv. 41. They shall then be for ever accursed, separated from God, and sent to burn for ever in the fire of Hell. "And these shall go into everlasting punishment: but the just into life everlasting"--Matt., xxv. 46.
After this sentence, the wicked shall, according to St. Ephrem, be compelled to take leave for ever of their relatives, of Paradise, of the saints, and of Mary the divine mother. "Farewell, ye just! farewell, O cross! farewell, O Paradise! farewell, fathers and brothers: we shall never see you again! farewell, O Mary, mother of God!"--S. Eph. de variis serm. inf. Then a great pit shall be opened in the middle of the valley: the unhappy damned shall be cast into it, and shall see those doors shut which shall never again be opened. O accursed sin! to what a miserable end will you one day conduct so many souls redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ! O unhappy souls! for whom is prepared such a melancholy end. But, brethren, have confidence. Jesus Christ is now a father, and not a judge. He is ready to pardon all who repent. Let us then instantly ask pardon from him. First Sunday In Advent: On The General Judgment (15 Minutes)
Imagine saying farewell to your wife or your husband or your son or your daughter or your own parents and brothers and sisters as you yourself are sent to Hell for all eternity? Imagine saying farewell to the Mother of God whose suffering at the foot of her Divine Son's Most Holy Cross effect your spiritual rebirth as an adopted son or daughter of the Living God? Imagine saying farewell to the instrument of our salvation, the Most Holy Cross, that we mocked and scorned by means of our sins and bad confessions and our lukewarmness and unworthy Communions and overall attachment to the spirit of the world, to say nothing of our refusal to be the least bit mortified so as to store some merit for eternity as the consecrated slaves of Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ through the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary?
Death can happen at any time, as Saint Alphonsus noted in his sermon for the Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost: All Ends And Soon Ends (21 Minutes). We must be prepared at all times to face death, and to pray each day to be delivered from a sudden and sacramentally unprovided for death:
When one of the great of this world is in the full enjoyment of the riches and honours which he has acquired, death shall come, and he shall be told: "Take order with thy house; for thou shalt die, and not live"--Isa., xxxviii. 1.Oh! what doleful tidings! The unhappy man must then say: Farewell, O world! farewell, O villa! farewell, O grotto! farewell, relatives! farewell, friends! farewell, sports! farewell, balls! farewell, comedies! farewell, banquets! farewell, honours! all is over for me. "For when he shall die, he shall take nothing away; nor shall his glory descend with him"--Ps., xlviii. 18. St. Bernard says that death produces a horrible separation of the soul from the body and from all the things of this Earth. "Opus mortis horrendum divortium"-serm. xxvi., in Cant. To the great of this world, whom worldlings regard as the most fortunate of mortals, the bare name of death is so full of bitterness that they are unwilling even to hear it mentioned; for their entire concern is to find peace in their Earthly goods. "O death!" says Ecclesiasticus, "how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that hath peace in his possessions"--Eccl., xli. 1. But, how much greater bitterness shall death itself cause, when it actually comes! Miserable the man who is attached to the goods of this world! Every separation produces pain. Hence, when the soul shall be separated by the stroke of death from the goods on which she had fixed all her affections, the pain must be excruciating. It was this that made king Agag exclaim, when the news of approaching death was announced to him: "Doth bitter death separate me in this manner?"--I. Kings., xv. 32. The great misfortune of worldlings is, that when they are on the point of being summoned to judgment, instead of endeavouring to adjust the accounts of their soul, they direct all their attention to Earthly things. But, says St. John Chrysostom, the punishment which awaits sinners, on account of having forgotten God during life, is that the forget themselves at the hour of death. "hac animadversione percutitur impius, ut moriens oliviscatur sui, qui vivens oblitus est Dei.". . . .
Men know well, and believe firmly, that they shall die; but they imagine death as far ass of it if were never to arrive. But Job tells us that the life of man is short. "Man born of a woman, living fora short time, is filled with many miseries. Who cometh forth like a flower and is destroyed"--Job., xiv. 2. At present the health of men is so much impaired, that, as we see by experience, the greater number of them die before they attain the age of seventy. And what, says St. James, is our life, but a vapour, which a blast of wind, a fever, a stroke of apoplexy, a puncture, an attack of the chest, causes to disappear, and which is seen no more? "For what is your life? It is a vapour which appeareth for a little while"--St. James, iv. 15. "We all die", said the woman of Thecua to David, "and like waters that return no more, we fall down into the earth"---II. Kings, xiv. 14. She spoke the truth;--as all rivers and streams run to the sea, and as the gliding waters return no more, so our days pass away, and we approach to death.
They pass; they pass quickly. "My days", says Job, "have been swifter than a post"--Job, ix. 25. Death comes to meet us, and runs more swiftly than a post; so that every step we make, every breath we draw, we approach to death. St. Jerome felt, that even while he was writing, he was drawing nearer to death. Hence he said: 'What I write is taken away from my life". "Quod scribo de mea vita tollitur". Let us, then, say with Job: Years pass by, and with them pleasures, honours, pomps, and all things in this world pass away, "and only the rave remaineth for me"--Job, xvii. 1. In a word, all the glory of the labours we have undergone in this world, in order to acquire a large income, a high character for valour, for learning and genius, shall end in our being thrown into a pit to become the food of worms. The miserable worldling then shall say at death: My house, my garden, my fashionable furniture, my pictures and rich apparel, shall, in a short time, belong no more to me; "and only the grave remaineth for me".
But, how much soever the worldling may be distracted by his worldly affairs and by his pleasures--how much soever he may be entangled in them, St. Chrysostom says, that, when the fear of death, which sets fire to all things of the present life, begins to enter the soul, it will compel him to think and to be solicitous about his lot after death. "Cum pulsare animam incipit metus mortis (ignis instar praesentis vitae omnia succendens) philosophari eam cogit, et futura solicita mente versari" serm. in II. tim.--Isa., xxxv. 5. Then indeed shall be opened the eyes of those blind worldlings who have employed their whole life in acquiring Earthly goods, and have paid but little attention to the interests of the soul. In all these shall be verified what Jesus Christ has told them--that death shall come when they least expect it. "At what hour you think not, the Son of Man will come"--Luke, xii.--40. Thus, on these unhappy men death always comes unexpectedly. Hence, because the lovers of the world are not usually warned of their approaching dissolution till it is very near, they must, in the last few days of life, adjust the accounts of their soul for the fifty or sixty years which they lived on this Earth. They will then desire another month, or another week, to settle their accounts, and to tranquilize their conscience. But, "they will seek for peace, and there shall be none:--Ezec., vii. 25. The time which they desire is refused. The assisting priest reads the divine command to depart instantly from this world: "Proficiscere anima Christiana de hoc mundo." Depart, Christian soul, from this world. Oh! how dangerous the entrance of worldlings into eternity, dying, as they do, amid so much darkness and confusion, in consequences of the disorderly state of the accounts of their souls. . . .
All things in this world--acquisitions, applause, grandeur--must, as we have said, all end, and end very soon. "the fashion of this world passeth away"--I. Cor., vii. 31. The scene of this life passes away: happy they who, in this scene, act their part well, and save their souls, preferring the eternal interests of the soul to all the temporal interests of the body. "He that hateth his life in his world, keepeth it unto life eternal"--John, xii. 26. Worldlings say: Happy the man who hoards up money! happy they who acquire the esteem of the world, and enjoy the pleasures of this life! O folly! Happy he who loves God and saves his soul! The salvation of his soul and was the only favour which king David asked of God. "One thing have I asked of the Lord, this will I seek after"--Ps., xxvi. 4. And St. Paul said, that to acquire the race of Jesus Christ, which contains eternal life, he despised as dung all worldly goods. "I count all things as loss.......and I count them as dung, that I may gain Christ"--Phil., iii. 8.
But certain fathers of families will say: I do not labour so much for myself as for my children, whom I wish to leave in comfortable circumstances. But I answer: If you dissipate the goods which you possess, and leave our children in poverty, you do wrong, and are guilty of sin. But will you lose your soul in order to leave your children comfortable? If you call into Hell, perhaps they will come and release you from it? O folly! Listen to what David said: "I have not seen the just man forsaken, nor his seed seeking bread"--Ps., xxxvi. 25. Attend to the service of God; act according to justice; the Lord will provide for the wants of your children; and you shall save your souls, and shall lay up that eternal treasure of happiness which can never be taken from you--a treasure not like Earthly possessions, of which yo may be deprived by robbers, and which you shall certainly lose at death. This is the advice which the Lord gives you--"But lay up to yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither the rust nor the moth doth consume, and where thieves do not break through nor steal"--Matt., vi. 20. In conclusion, attend to the beautiful admonition which St. Gregory gives to all who wish to live well and to gain eternal life. "Sit nobis in intentione aeternitas, in usu temporalitats". Let the end of all our actions in this life be, the acquisition of eternal goods; and let us use temporal things only to preserve life for the little time we have to remain on this Earth. The saint continues: "Sicut nulla est proportio inter aeternitatem et nostrae vitae tempus, ita nulla debet esse proportio inter aeternitatis, et hujus, vitae curas". As this is an infinite distance between eternity and the time of our life, so there ought to be, according to our mode of understanding, an infinite distance between the attention which we should pay to the goods of eternity, which shall be enjoyed for ever, and the care we take of the goods of this life, which death shall soon take away from us. (Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost: All Ends And Soon Ends.)
In order to get home to Heaven, therefore, we must surround ourselves with people who are not worldlings. No, this does not mean that we are any better than other people. We are sinners. Unlike worldlings and those steeped in lives of unrepentant sin, however, and solely because of God's gratuitous graces won for us by the shedding of every single drop His Most Precious Blood on the wood of the Holy Cross and that flow into our hearts and souls through the loving hands of Our Lady, the Mediatrix of All Graces, we are sorry for our sins and want to amend our lives as we do reparation for our sins and those of the whole world as the consecrated slaves of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus through the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary. We must avoid bad company, Saint Alphonsus de Liguori explained in his sermon for the Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost: On Avoiding Bad Company (15 Minutes):
"A friend of fools:, says the Holy Ghost, "shall become like them"--Prov., xiii. 20. Christians who live in enmity with God, are, Father M. Avila used to say, all fools, who deserve to be shut up in a madhouse. For, what greater madness can be conceived than to believe in Hell, and to live in sin? But the man who contracts an intimacy with these fools, shall soon become like them. Although he should hear all the sermons of the sacred orators, he will continue in vice, according to the celebrated maxim: "Examples make greater impressions than words". Hence the Royal Prophet has said: "With the elect though wilt be elect, and with the perverse thou wilt be perverted"--Ps., xvii. 27. St. Augustine says, that familiarity with sinners is as it were a hook, which draws us to communicate in their vices. Let us, said the saint, avoid wicked friends, "lest by their company we may be drawn to a communion of vice". St. Thomas teaches, that to know whom we should avoid, is a great means of saving our souls. "Firma tutela salutis est, scire quem fugiamus".
"Let their way become dark and slipper, and let the angel of the Lord pursue them"--Ps., xxxiv. 6. All men in this life walk in the midst of darkness, and in a slippery way. If, then, a bad angel--that is, a wicked companion, who is worse than any devil--pursue them, and endeavour to drive them into an abyss, who shall be able to escape death? "Talis eris", says Plato, "qualis conversatio quam sequeris?" And St. John Chrysostom said, that if we wish to know a man's moral habits, we have only to observe the character of the friends with whom he associates: because friendship finds or makes him like his friends. "Vis nosse hominem, attende quorum familiartate assuescat: amicitia aut pares invenit, aut pares facit:. First, because, to please his friends, a man will endeavour to imitate them; secondly, because, as Seneca says, nature inclines men to do what they see others do. And the Scripture says: "They were mingled among the heathens, and learned their works"--Ps., cv. 35. According to St. Basil, as air which comes from pestilential places causes infection, so, by conversation with bad companions, we almost imperceptibly contract their vices. "Quemadmodum in pestilentibus locis sensim attractus aer latentem corporibus morbum injuicit sic itidem in prava conversatione maxima a nobis mala haurinutur, etiamsi statim incommodum non sentiatur"--S. Bas., hom. ix. ex. var. Quod Deus, etc. And St. Bernard says, that St. Peter, in consequence of associating with the enemies of Jesus Christ, denied his Master. "Existens cum passionis dominicae ministris, Dominum negavit".
But how, asks St. Ambrose, can bad companions give you the odour of chastity, when they exhale the stench of impurity? How can they infuse into you sentiments of devotion, when they themselves fly from it? How can they impart to you a shame of offending God, when they cast it away? "Quid tibi demonstrant castiatem quem non habent? Devotionem quam non sequuuntur? Verecundiam quam projiciunt?" St. Augustine writes of himself, that when he associated with bad companions, who boasted of their wickedness, he felt himself impelled to sin without shame; and to appear like them, he gloried in his evil actions. "Pudebat", he says, "me esse pudentum"-lib. 2, de Conf., c. ix. Hence Isaias admonishes you to "touch no unclean thing:--Isa., lii. 11. Touch not what is unclean: if you don, you too shall be polluted. he that handles pitch, says Ecclesiasticus, shall certainly be defiled with it; and they who keep company with the proud, shall be clothed with pride. The same holds for other vices: "He that toucheth pitch, shall be defiled with it; and he hath fellowship with the proud, shall put on pride"--Eccl., xiii. 1.
What then must we do? The Wise Man tells us, that we ought not only to avoid the vices of the wicked, but also to beware of treading in the ways in which they walk. "Restrain they foot from their paths"--Prov., i. 15. That is, we should avoid their conversations, their discourses, their feasts, and all the allurements and presents with which they will seek to entice us into their net. "My son," says Solomon, "if sinners shall entice thee, consent not them"--Prov., i. 10. Without the decoy, the birds are not enticed into the fowler's net. "Will the bird fall into the snare upon the earth, if there be no fowler?"--Amos, iii. 5. The Devil employs vicious friends as decoys, to draw so many souls into the snare of sin. "My enemies", says Jeremias, "have chased me, and have caught me like a bird without cause"--Lamen., iii. 52. He says, without cause. Ask the wicked whey they have made a certain innocent young man fall into sin; and they will answer: We have done it without cause; we only wish to see him to do what we ourselves do. This, says St. Ephrem, is one of the artifices of the Devil: when he has caught a soul in his net, he makes him a snare, or a decoy, to deceive others. "Cum primum capta fuerit anima, ad alias decipiendas fit quasi laqueus".
Hence it is necessary to avoid, as you would a plague, all familiarity with these scorpions of Hell. I have said that you must avoid familiarity with them--that is, all fellowship in their banquets or conversation; for, never to meet them is, as the Apostle says, impossible. "Otherwise you must needs go out of this world"--I. Cor., v. 10. But, it is in our power to abstain from familiar intercourse with them. "But now I have written to you, not to keep company, etc........with such a one, not so much as to eat"--ibid., v. 11. I have called them scorpions: so they have been called by the Prophet Ezechiel: "Thou art among unbelievers and destroyers, and thou dwellest among scorpions"--Ezech., ii. 6. Would you live in the midst of scorpions? You must then fly from scandalous friends, who, by their bad examples and words, poison your soul. "A man's enemies shall be they of his own household"--Matt., x. 36. Wicked friends that are very familiar and intimate to us, become the most pernicious enemies of our souls. "Who", says Ecclesiasticus, "will pit an enchanter struck by a serpent, or any that come near wild beasts? So it is with him that keepeth company with a wicked man"--Eccl., xii. 13. If the man that makes free with serpents, or with ferocious wild beasts, be bitten or devoured by them, who will take pity on him? And so it is with him who associates with scandalous companions; if, by their bad example, he be contaminated and lost, neither God nor man will have compassion on him; because he was cautioned to fly from their society.
One scandalous companion is enough to corrupt all who treat him as a friend. "Know you not", says St. Paul, "That a little leaven corrupts the whole lump?"--I. Cor., v. 6. One of these scandalous sinners is able, by a perverse maxim, to infect all his companions. They are the false prophets whom Jesus Christ warns us to avoid. "Beware of false prophets",--Matt., vii. 15. False prophets deceive, not only by false predictions, but also by false maxims or doctrines, which are productive of the greatest mischief. For, as Seneca says, they leave in the soul certain seeds of iniquity which lead to evil. "Semina in animo relinquunt, quae inducunt ad malum". It is too true that scandalous language, as experience proves, corrupts the morals of those who hear it. "Evil communications", says the Apostle, "corrupt good manner"--I. cor., xv. 33. A young man refuses, through the fear of God, to commit a certain sin; an incarnate David, a bad companion, comes, and says to him what the serpent said to Eve--"No; you shall not die the death"--Gen., iii. 4. What are you afraid of? How many others commit this sin? You are young; God will have pity on your youth. They will, as is written in the book of Wisdom, say: "Come, therefore, let us enjoy the good things that are present,...let us spend our time in amusements and in joy. "O nimis iniqua amicitia", says St. Augustine, "cum dicitur, eaumus, faciamus: pudet non esse impudentum". O cruel friendship of those who say: Let us go and do, etc.; it is a shame not e shameless. He who hears such language is shamed not to yield to it, and not to be as shameless as they who utter it.
When any passion is kindled within us, we must be particularly careful in selecting the persons whom we will consult. For, then the passion itself will incline us to seek counsel from those who will probably give the advice which is most agreeable to the passion. But from such evil counsellors, who do not speak according to God, we should fly with greater horror than from an enemy; for their evil counsel, along with the passion which is excited, may precipitate us into horrible excesses. As soon as the passion shall subside, we shall see the error committed, and the delusion into which we have been led by false friends. But the good advice of a friend, who speaks according to Christian truth and meekness, preservers us from every disorder, and restores calm to the soul.
"Depart from the unjust", says the Lord, "and evils shall depart from thee"--Eccl., vii. 2. Fly, separate from wicked companions, and you shall cease to commit sin. "Neither let the way of evil please thee. Flee from it, pass not by it; go aside and forsake it"--Prov., iv., 14, 15. Avoid the ways in which these vicious friends walk, that you may not even meet them. "Forsake not an old friend; for the new will not be like to him"--Eccl., ix.. 14. Do not leave your first friend, who loved you before you came into the world. "I have love thee with an everlasting love"--Jer., xxxi. 3. Your new friends do not love you; they hate you more than your greatest enemy; they seek not your welfare, as God does, but their own pleasures, and the satisfaction of having companions of their wickedness and perdition. You will, perhaps, say: I feel a repugnance to separate from such a friend, who has been solicitous for my welfare; to break off from him would appear to be an act of ingratitude. What welfare? what ingratitude? god alone wishes your welfare; to break off from him would appear to be an act of ingratitude. Your friend wishes your eternal ruin; he wishes you to follow him, but cares not if you be damned. It is not ingratitude to abandon a friend who leads you to Hell; but it is ingratitude to forsake God, who has created you, who has died for you on the cross, and who desires your salvation.
Fly then from the conversation of the these wicked friends. "Hedge in thy ears with thorns, hear not a wicked tongue"--Eccl., xxviiii. 28. Beware of listening to the language of such friends; their words may bring you to perdition. And when you hear them speak improperly, arm yourself with thorns, and reprove them, not only for the purpose of rebuking, but also of converting them. "Ut non solum", says St. Augustine, "repellantur sed etiam compunganatur". Listen to a frightful example, and learn the evil which a wicked friend does. Father Sabatino relates in his Evangelical Light, that two friends of that kind were one day together. One of them, to please the other, committed a sin; but, after they separated, he died suddenly. The other, who knew nothing of his death, saw, in his sleep, his friend, and according to his custom, ran to embrace him. But the deceased appeared to be surrounded with fire, and began to blaspheme the other, and to upbraid him for being the cause of his damnation. The other awoke, and changed his life. But his unhappy friend was damned; and for his damnation there is not, and shall not be, any remedy for all eternity. (Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost: On Avoiding Bad Company.)
Those of us who are parents have a particular obligation to make sure that our children do not have bad companions, and that we do not give them scandal by associating with those who are unrepentant sinners who are hostile to the truths of the Holy Faith. It is better for there to be a little estrangement, yes, even from parents and brothers and sisters and other relatives, in this passing, mortal vale of tears than an unhappy reunion with them in Hell for all eternity.
It is far, far easier for bad example to corrupt the souls of our children than it is for our own "good" example (most of which involves being silent in the face of the promotion of evil and blasphemy and sacrilege, which is hardly "good" example at all but abject cowardice in the face of offenses to the honor and majesty and glory of God!) to influence those steeped in sins. Although each situation in this regard is unique and must be handled according to the direction offered by a true bishop or a true priest, whether in or out of the confessional, which is why hard and fast generalizations must yield to the direction of these confessors, it is nevertheless true, as Saint Alphonsus de Liguori noted, that we cannot be indifferent to the influence of bad companions and must endeavor, as far as is humanly possible and according to the direction offered us by our true shepherds, to avoid frequent and familiar intercourse with those steeped unrepentantly in sin. We must be serious about getting home to Heaven, preferring to love God rather than seeking to please men, and this applies, once again with pastoral direction, whether given in or out of the confessional, to those in the conciliar world whose opinionism and/or adherence to a false religious sect might pose a serious danger to the sanctification and salvation of our children's immortal souls.
Saint Alphonsus de Liguori wrote of the sin of human respect (the sin of seeking the esteem and support and friendship of others at the expense of speaking out in defense of the truth of the Holy Faith) in his sermon for Sixth Sunday After Easter: On Human Respect. There are people we know who called His Excellency Bishop Robert Fidelis McKenna, O.P., a simply marvelous and humble shepherd of souls, "mean" because he insisted that they not cremate the body of their husband and father. Mean? Mean? It is not "mean" to do one's Catholic duty. It is not "mean" to seek the unconditional conversion of those outside of the true Church to her maternal bosom, outside of which there is no salvation.
Be attentive. Brethern, if we wish to save our souls, we must overcome human respect, and bear the little confusion which may arise from the scoffs of the enemies of the cross of Jesus Christ. "For there is a shame that bringeth sin, and there is a shame that bringeth glory and grace"-Eccl., iv. 25. If we do not suffer this confusion with patience, it will lead us into the pit of sin; but, if we submit to it for God's sake, it will obtain for us the divine grace here, and great glory hereafter. "As," says St. Gregory, "bashfulness is laudable in evil, so it is reprehensible in good"--hom. x., in Ezech.
But some of you will say: I attend to my own affairs; I wish to save my soul; why should I be persecuted? But there is no remedy; it is impossible to serve God, and not be persecuted. "The wicked loathe them that are in the right way"--Prov., xxix. 27. Sinners cannot bear the sight of the man who lives according to the Gospel, because his life is a continual censure on their disorderly conduct; and therefore they say: "Let us lie in wait for the just; because he is not for our turn, and he is contrary to our doings, and upbraideth us with transgressions of the law"--Wis., ii. 12. The proud man, who seeks revenge for every insult he receives, would wish that all should avenge the offences that may be offered to him. The avaricious, who grow rich by injustice, wish that all should imitate their fraudulent practices. The drunkard wishes to see others indulge like himself, in intoxication. The immoral, who boast of their impurities, and can scarcely utter a word which does not savour of obscenity, desire that all should act and speak as they do; and those who do not imitate their conduct, they regard as mean, clownish, and intractable--as men without honour and without education. "They are of the world; therefore of the world they speak"--I. John., iv. 5. Worldlings can speak no other language than that of the world. Oh! how great is their poverty and blindness! Sin has blinded them, and therefore they speak profanely. "These things they thought, and were deceived; for their own malice blinded them"--Wis., ii, 21. . . .
Wicked friends come to you and say: "What extravagancies are those in which you indulge? Why do you not act like others? Say to them in answer: My conduct is not opposed to that of all men; there are others who lead a holy life. They are indeed few; but I will follow their example; for the Gospel says: "Many are called, but few are chosen"--Matt., xx. 16. "If", says St. John Climacus, "you wish to be saved with the few, live like the few". But, they will add, do you not see that all murmur against you. and condemn your manner of living? Let your answer be: It is enough for me, that God does not censure my conduct. Is it not better to obey God than to obey men? Such was the answer of St. Peter and St. John to the Jewish priests: "If it be just in the sight of God to hear you rather than God, judge yet"--Acts, iv. 19. If they ask you how you can bear an insult? or who, after submitting to it, can you appear among your equals? answer them by saying, that you are a Christian, and that it is enough for you to appear well in the eyes of God. Such should be your answer to all these satellites of Satan: you must despise all their maxims and reproaches. And when it is necessary to reprove those who make little of God's law, you must take courage and correct them publicly. "Then that sin, reprove before all"--I. Tim., v. 20. And when there is question of the divine honour, we should not be frightened by the dignity of the man who offends God; let us say to him openly: This is sinful; it cannot be done. Let us imitate the Baptist, who reproved King Herod for living his brother's wife and said to him: "It is not lawful for thee to have her"--Matt., xiv. 4. Men indeed shall regard us as fools, and turn us into derision; but, on the day of judgment they shall acknowledge that they have been foolish, and we have shall have the glory of being numbered among the saints. They shall say: "These are they whom we had some time in derision. . . . . We fools esteemed their life madness, and their end without honour. Behold how they are numbered among the children of God, and their lot is among the saints"--Wis., v. 3, 4, 5. (Sixth Sunday After Easter: On Human Respect.)
It is important to teach our children to eschew human respect, which will be very difficult if we are in the constant companionship of unrepentant sinners who are "nice," "tolerant," "compassionate," "charitable," and who shower our children with all manner of gifts and other treats. "Uncle Bob doesn't agree with you, Dad. He says that there is no God to Whom we must submit ourselves. Why should I listen to you?" "Aunt Jemima says that there are many different 'lifestyles' to embrace. Why can't I try one, Mama?" Oh, my friends, yes, it is far, far easier to lose our children to "nice" relatives than it is for our constant familiarity with them to to convert them to the true Faith. We are better off praying Rosaries for them and to give them blessed Green Scapulars, once again being careful to make sure that each situation, which is particular, is handled by means of the spiritual direction of a true bishop or a true priest. And we must be most assiduous about defending the honor and glory and majesty of God when it is under attack by the conciliar officials, including Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI, never fearing to hold the feet of those, especially those "priests" in the Motu communities, who choose to be silent in the face of these outrages in order to maintain their "good standing" with the false religious sect to which they are attached.
Obviously, many of us have given bad example and scandal to others! We are, however, supposed to learn from our mistakes, from our being influenced by the world, the flesh and the devil, from our having fallen prey to human respect and having spoken and acted indecently or immodestly. And one of the most salutary remedies for our past sins, as Saint Alphonsus de Liguori noted in his sermon for the Second Sunday In Advent: On The Advantages Of Tribulations (23 Minutes), is to accept tribulations as coming directly from the hand of God and as a sign of His great love for us erring sinners:
Sixthly, tribulations enable us to acquire great merits before God, by giving us opportunities of exercising the virtues of humility, of patience, and of resignation to the divine will. The venerable John d'Avila used to say, that a single blessed be God, in adversity, is worth more than a thousand acts of thanksgiving in prosperity. "Take away", says St. Ambrose, "the contents of the martyrs, and you have taken away their crowns"--in Luc., c. iv. Oh! what a treasure of merits is acquired by patiently bearing insults, poverty, and sickness. Insults from men were the great objects of the desires of the saints, who sought to be despised for the love of Jesus Christ, and thus to be made like unto him.
How great is the merit gained by bearing with the convenience of poverty. "My God and my all", says St. Francis of Assisium: in expressing this sentiment, he enjoyed more of true riches than all the princes of the Earth. How truly has St. Teresa said, that "the less we have here, the more we shall enjoy hereafter"! Oh! how happy is the mean who can say from his heart: My Jesus, thou alone art sufficient for me! If, says St. Chrysostom, you esteem yourself unhappy because you are poor, you are indeed miserable and deserving of tears; not because you are poor, but because, being poor, you do not embrace your poverty, and esteem yourself happy. "Sane dignus es lachyrmis ob hoc, quod miserum te existimas, non ideo quod pauper es"--serm. II. Epis. ad Phil.
By bearing patiently with the pains of sickness, a great, and perhaps the greater, part of the crown which is prepared for us in Heaven is completed. The sick sometimes complain that in sickness they can do nothing; but they err, for, in their infirmities they can do all things, by accepting their sufferings with peace and resignation. "The cross of Christ", says St. Chrysostom, "is the key of Paradise"--hom,.in Luc. de vir.
St. Francis de Sales used to say: "To suffer constantly for Jesus is the science of the saints; we shall thus soon become saints". It is by sufferings that God proves his servants, and finds them worthy of himself. "Deus tentavit es, et invenit eos dignos se"--Wisd., iii. 5. "Whom," says St. Paul, "the Lord loveth, he chastiseth; and he scourgeth every son whom he receiveth:--Heb., xii. 6. Hence Jesus Christ once said to St. Teresa: "Be assured that the souls dearest to my Father are those who suffer the greatest afflictions"/ Hence Job said: "If we have received good things at the hand of God, why should we not receive evil?'--Job., ii. 10. If we have gladly received from God the goods of this Earth, why should we not receive more cheerfully tribulations, which are far more useful to us than worldly prosperity? St. Gregory informs us, that, as flame fanned by the wind increases, so the soul is made perfect when she is oppressed by tribulations. "Ignis flatu permitur, ut crescat"--Ep., xxv. (Second Sunday In Advent: On The Advantages Of Tribulations.)
Saint Alphonsus de Liguori gave us "what for" in his Sunday sermons to help us get home to Heaven. Saint Alphonsus teaches us to walk the Way of the Cross (his own meditations for the Way of the Cross were the ones that were used at Saint Aloysius School in Great Neck, New York, when I was a student there from 1956 to 1962) by keeping close to the Mother of God, Mary our Immaculate Queen, she who is the Mediatrix of All Graces, as he explained in The Glories of Mary:
From Jesus, however, it is (we must understand) that we receive grace as the author of grace, from Mary as a mediatress; from Jesus as a Savior, from Mary as an advocate; from Jesus as a source, from Mary as a channel. Hence St. Bernard says, that God established Mary as the channel of the mercies that he wished to dispense to men; therefore he filled her with grace, that each one's part might be communicated to him from her fullness; "A full aqueduct, that others may receive of her fullness, but not fullness herself." Therefore the saint exhorts all to consider, with how much love God wills that we should honor this great Virgin, since he has deposited the whole treasure of his graces in her: so that whatever we possess of hope, grace, and salvation, we may thank our most loving Queen for all, since all comes to us from her hands and by her powerful intercession. He thus beautifully expresses himself: "Behold with what tender feelings of devotion he wills that we should honor her! He who has placed the plenitude of all good in Mary; that thus, if we have any hope, or anything salutary in us, we may know that it was from her or that it over-flowed."
Miserable is that soul that closes this channel of grace against itself, by neglecting to recommend itself to Mary! when Holofernes wished to gain possession of the city of Bethulia, he took care to destroy the aqueducts: He commanded their aqueduct to be cut off. And this the devil does when he wishes to become master of a soul; he causes it to give up devotion to the most Blessed Virgin Mary; and when once this channel is closed, it easily loses supernatural light, the fear of God, and finally eternal salvation.
Saint Alphonsus teaches us from eternity that Our Lady is the pathway to Heaven. She is our life, our sweetness, and our hope. She can plead for us with her Divine Son, Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, now and the hour of our deaths. We need her intercession as we are enrolled in her Brown Scapular and as we pray as many Rosaries each day as our states in life permit. She will soften the blows of what we deserve by means of our sins by helping us to have true sorrow for them as we amend our lives and seek to do reparation for them by offering all that that we have and to to the Most Sacred Heart of her Divine Son through her own Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart. Saint Alphonsus, who was firm on the pulpit and the quintessence of Christian meekness and humility in the service of the poor and the downtrodden, will help us increase our devotion to Our Lady, the Queen of Mercy, so that we will not get what our sins deserve in strict justice, eternal Hellfire, when we die.
Saint Alphonsus gave us "what for" in this life so that we can share eternity with Him in Heaven in the company of the Immaculate Queen of Heaven and Earth. We should thank him for being so brutally honest with us in the service of Christ the King and Mary our Immaculate Queen!
Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us now and at the hour of our death.
Saint Alphonsus de Liguori, pray for us.
Pope Saint Stephen, pray for us.


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That claim itself strikes me as both false and trivial. And I can think of many philosophical claims that are both true and illuminating. But—for reasons that are likely very different than what motivated my friend and his mentor—I do find the category of "false and illuminating" to be intriguing.
I tell my students that it is a good thing to have a couple of favorite heretics. Some false perspectives are illuminating, and it can be healthy for Christians who love ideas to be challenged regularly by perspectives that we can disagree with in productive ways.
For a while, especially when I was first learning the ropes in Anglo-American analytic philosophy, Bertrand Russell was one of my special favorite heretics. In his technical philosophical work in epistemology and logic, he changed his mind a lot, and showed no embarrassment about doing so. I admired that in him. But what I enjoyed even more were his popular writings, especially about religious matters.
I find something admirable in that confession. It expresses a sense of loss, along with a corresponding sense of moral loneliness. Being one's own autonomous moral legislator can be a lonely experience.
Part of my fondness for Nietzsche and Sartre is that together we share some common philosophical dislikes, such as the Richard Dawkins kind of "happy atheism." My favorite existentialist heretics get directly to the heart of the matter in their depictions of the human condition. The non-existence of God, they say, means that there is no sovereign divine Will that called the universe into being. And since an objectively ordered reality—a cosmos—would require a divine "let there be" to create and sustain it, reality is, properly understood, a chaos. With no supreme Creator available, it is up to us to make the best of it as finite creators of our worlds of meaning.
Yes, of course. That captures Sartre's deep differences with the Christian perspective. But the "plagiarism and perversion" character of this brand of atheism is important to take positive notice of. Some perspectives come close to the Christian vision precisely because they are, in another sense, so far away from it.
When the Serpent tempted Eve in Genesis 3, he told her that she could be her own god. That claim is false, but in its own way it is profoundly illuminating. Two chapters earlier in Genesis we are informed that Adam and Eve were created in God's "image" and "likeness." Human beings are "like" God in an extremely important way: they are "imagers" of the true God. Only an "imager" of God can make the fatal move of trying to be a god. My favorite heretics are thinkers who perversely acknowledge that subtlety of the serpentine deception.
Sartre seems to have gone out of style in contemporary intellectual circles, and Nietzsche has mainly been taken over by the "literary criticism" folks. Maybe this is a good time to bring them back into the broader conversation. Perspectives that are both false and illuminating are in short supply these days.


text:
Felix Gasselich (Bécs, 1955. december 21. –) válogatott osztrák labdarúgó, középpályás.

Pályafutása

Klubcsapatban
1970-ben az Austria Wien korosztályos csapatában kezdte a labdarúgást, ahol 1973-ban mutatkozott be az első csapatban. 1983 és 1985 között a holland Ajax, 1985–86-ban a LASK Linz, 1986 és 1988 között a Wiener SC, 1988–89-ben a Grazer AK, 1989–90-ben a Kremser SC, 1990–91-ben a Donaufeld Wien labdarúgója volt. Az Austria csapatával öt bajnoki címet és három osztrákkupa-győzelmet nyert. Tagja volt az 1977–78-as idényben KEK-döntős csapatnak. Az Ajax együttesével egy holland bajnoki címet és kupagyőzelmet ért el.

A válogatottban
1978 és 1984 között 19 alkalommal szerepelt az osztrák válogatottban és három gólt szerzett.

Sikerei, díjai
 Austria Wien
 Osztrák bajnokság
 bajnok (5): 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81
 Osztrák kupa
 győztes (3): 1977, 1980, 1982
 Kupagyőztesek Európa-kupája (KEK)
 döntős: 1977–78
 Ajax
 Holland bajnokság
 bajnok: 1984–85
 Holland kupa
 győztes: 1986

Források

1955-ben született személyek
Élő személyek
Osztrák labdarúgók
Labdarúgó-középpályások
Az FK Austria Wien labdarúgói
Az Ajax labdarúgói
A LASK Linz labdarúgói
A Wiener SC labdarúgói
A Grazer AK labdarúgói
Az Eredivisie labdarúgói
Bécsiek

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Sen Ted Cruz
The only birthday Planned Parenthood cares about
One hundred years ago this month, eugenics advocate Margaret Sanger founded the organization today known as Planned Parenthood. While many on the Left will celebrate this anniversary, Planned Parenthood's "birthday" — an irony given its grim business of preventing actual birthdays — deserves no such distinction. So rather than celebrate, we should mourn the millions of unborn children who have been denied the chance to live. Today, Americans should ask how did we get here? How did a nation that prizes life above all other rights become a massive supporter and taxpayer-funded enabler of ending that basic right? And what can we do to turn the tide and make unlimited abortion a thing of the past?
Since its inception, Planned Parenthood has been directly responsible for the deaths of nearly seven million unborn children. It was founded upon Margaret Sanger's reprehensible belief that the human race could somehow be "improved" by ridding the world of less fortunate minorities. Never heard that? The media don't report it.
But take a look at Sanger's own words. In a 1923 New York Times article, Sanger explained that her goal was the "release and cultivation of the better racial elements in our society and the gradual suppression, elimination and eventual extirpation of defective stock — those human weeds which threaten the blossoming of the finest flowers of American civilization."
"Defective stock." "Human weeds." That's how Sanger viewed minorities, immigrants, the disabled, and the "feeble-minded," as her cruel determinism labeled it. All, according to Planned Parenthood's founder, were to be marked for segregation and sterilization.
No sentiment could be further from the universal principles on which our nation was founded. Sanger rejected the very premise of our Declaration of Independence, that all people "are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness." And so does the organization she founded.
Over the years, Planned Parenthood has cunningly and deceptively marketed itself as an organization that exists to champion women's health. It has tried to cloud the true mission of its business by also providing routine services that nearly any other clinic or medical provider can offer. But, unlike most other clinics, Planned Parenthood draws its main profits — not from women's health — but from abortion on a massive scale, funded by the American taxpayer. No one should be fooled by their modern rhetoric; one hundred years later Planned Parenthood continues to operate on the principle that an unborn child — which the abortion lobby now calls a "clump of cells" or a "fetus" rather than their previous terminology of a "human weed" — is not equal to other human beings and should be eliminated.
Even more troubling, Planned Parenthood's abortion business is growing at a ghastly rate. In 1973, Roe v. Wade opened the floodgates of industrialized abortion, and from 2012 through 2014 alone, Planned Parenthood took the lives of 978,818 children. That is almost a million unborn babies in three years. By itself, Planned Parenthood now accounts for nearly one-third of all abortions in the United States.
Planned Parenthood has profited mightily from its life-ending practices, growing into a billion-dollar behemoth that generates up to 40 percent of its clinic revenues from the hundreds of thousands of abortions it performs every year. In Planned Parenthood's 2015 Annual Report, the group listed a total revenue of nearly $1.3 billion. And although nearly half of its funding comes from American taxpayers, Planned Parenthood nevertheless generously compensates its top officers. And it spends millions on political advertising and lobbying. In a just society, no one should profit, much less get rich, from taking innocent life. Nor should any organization engaged in the abortion business get a dime of taxpayer money.
Liberals may continue to contend that abortion and women's health care are synonymous — look no further than the Democrat nominee who has long supported abortion without limits. But the pro-life movement's years of work promoting a culture of life in the decades since Roe has begun to change hearts and minds. Thankfully, our nation's younger generations are becoming more pro-life than ever before. A Gallup poll found that when compared to all other age groups, young adults were the most likely to say abortion should be illegal. More women are also turning to adoption instead of abortion, granting families who cannot have children their wish of becoming caring, loving parents.
Pro-lifers are not only changing hearts and minds, they're also successfully encouraging states to pass laws that limit and discourage abortion, such as bans on partial birth and late-term abortion, requirements that mothers be provided with sonograms, parental notification requirements, and incentives to encourage adoption. But our work is not done. We must continue our efforts to expose the abhorrent practices of the abortion industry, and we must not stop until the culture of abortion becomes a thing of the past.
While anti-life advocates may choose to celebrate Planned Parenthood's founding, we will instead mark this day as one of remembrance for an entire generation who never reached their first birthdays. We will recommit to building a culture of life that cares for mothers, nurtures their children at every stage of development, and rejects the destructive culture of organizations like Planned Parenthood and all those who would permit the taking of human life.


Just published by Whin Sill Press, Northumberland, this is a beautifully produced full colour, large format book. It is a case bound hard back, cover printed, with an additional laminated printed wrap cover.
Noel has recently been commended for the Whitworth Poetry Prize. Watch the above video to find out more and to see Noel's reading at the Whitworth Gallery.