text:
Philippines: Typhoon Haiyan, Situation Report No. 4 (as of 10 November 2013)
• 9.5 million people are affected by Typhoon Haiyan in nine regions across the Philippines.
• Relief operations scale up in the most affected areas.
• Reception and Departure Centre established at Tacloban City airport.
• Access remains a major challenge; roundtrip travel between Tacloban airport and the city centre takes 6 hours.
Typhoon Haiyan - Nov 2013
Philippines: Typhoon Haiyan Humanitarian Dashboard (as of 22 October 2014)
Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) Final Periodic Monitoring Report November 2013 to August 2014
Evaluation and Lessons Learned
Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) Periodic Monitoring Report Covering February to April 2014
Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) Consolidated Cluster Briefs 19 June 2014
CCCM Cluster
Education Cluster

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Kottayam district in Kerala is bordered by the lofty and mighty Western Ghats on the east and the Vembanad Lake and paddy fields of Kuttanad on the west. Not familiar to many, Kottayam possesses a variety of tourist resources and geographical diversity within a small area of about 2208 sq. km. Its panoramic backwater stretches, lush paddy fields, highlands, hills and hillocks, extensive rubber plantations, places associated with many legends and a totally literate people have given Kottayam District the enviable title: 'The Land of Letters, Legends, Latex and Lakes'. Kottayam is also called as Aksharanagari (the citadel of letters) considering its contribution to print media and literature.
The district is divided into high-land, midland and lowland, the bulk being constituted by the midland regions. Meenachil and Kanjirappally taluks have high land and midland areas while Kottayam, Changanassery and Vaikom Taluks have midland and lowland areas. Positioned a little south to central Kerala, Kottayam district is bordered on the north by Ernakulam district, on the east by Idukki district and on the south by Alappuzha district - the most popular destinations in Kerala. The Vembanad Lake forms the western boundary.
The city is also an important trading center of spices and commercial crops, especially rubber. Most of India's natural rubber originates from the acres of well-kept plantations of Kottayam, which in itself is a sight to behold.
All these unique features differentiate Kottayam from most other parts of Kerala, and it also stands out in terms of distinct culture and educational background.


It's striking how easily you can walk into the 'Jungle'. An old sign for a sports centre, now scribbled over, marks the main track into this semi-permanent camp that has become home for around 4000 refugees and migrants.
There is no organisation here. No international agency working to distribute aid to those who need it most. Small-scale charities and plucky individuals try valiantly to plug the gap left by an absence of official aid, their efforts uncoordinated and often inefficient.
Abandoned by the authorities, the people in the Jungle have developed their own community. Neighbourhoods have built up - we walk through the Kuwaiti district, meet the Iranians, and are invited to tea by the Eritreans. The smell of spices and cooking combines with the stench of the toilets. A minor argument breaks out about who is going to remove a mound of rotting food.
Wandering around the camp it's easy to forget you're in Europe - supermarket shopping bags and tins of baked beans sit among the piles of litter - but this is a world apart from that 'civilisation'. The people living here have travelled thousands of miles and now just twenty remain before they reach the UK coast. No one we spoke to knew how they would conquer that final stretch.
But beneath the semblance of chaos are the beginnings of organisation - a shop selling Mars bars, a mobile phone charging point, even a disco with a glitter ball. A human chain forms to pass a van-load of supplies deep into the camp, and we meet a group of men using tree branches and donated sleeping bags to construct a shelter that will be home to today's new arrivals. For some who arrive here, the 'Jungle' provides relative luxury after nights spent sleeping on the roadside. This could be home for months.
Faced with pictures like this, hundreds of well-meaning individuals across Yorkshire and the UK have raised money and donated supplies for the people living in the Calais camp. But their efforts to help the most needy are often undermined amid the scrum for supplies. We see pile after pile of donated clothes waiting to be burnt - summer clothes, children's clothes, clothes for women who make up only a tiny minority of the camp's population. Keen to help in whatever way they can, people donate unsuitable items, and unwittingly add to the waste that clogs up the camp.
We leave as dusk falls, walking past men marching intently towards the train lines. Tonight they will try to sneak into the Channel Tunnel, on trains or in trucks. For many it will not be the first time.
Some may get lucky, most will be unsuccessful, all will risk their lives. Their apparent desperation will be used by many as a reason to send more aid, more supplies. Donations can make life more comfortable in the camp, but they can't provide what most people here desire - a passport to a 'better life' in the UK.
WATCH: ITV Calendar presenter Christine Talbot in the Calais Jungle.


text: Q: Shifting density Assume that we are given a density $g(x)$ and we want to shift it to the right by $\beta$. Then the new density will be $\hat{g}(x) = g(x - \beta)$. Are there any results that can help simplifying the expression. For example, consider a gamma random variable drawn from $\mathrm{Gamma}(a,b)$. If we were to scale this gamma random variable, then it would be equivalent to drawing a random variable from $\mathrm{Gamma}(a,b \times c)$ where $c$ is the amount of scaling. Does there exist any results saying the same just for shifting?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Parents have frequently asked questions and Dr. Jill A. Kronberg has the answers.
Are vision problems and behavioral problems related?
According to a recent survey, 39% of parents don't realize that behavioral problems can be an indication that a child has a vision problem. A child with undetected vision problems may get frustrated or bored in school because he or she can't see the board, the teacher or read a book easily. Therefore, students with problems seeing sometimes act out.
Studies indicate that 60% of children identified as having a learning problem actually suffer from undetected vision problems.
When we move our eyes to the next line of print, we continue with the process.
Writing is similar, but almost works in the reverse order to reading. We start with an image in our mind and code it into words. At the same time, we control the movement of the pencil while continually working to keep the written material making sense. Throughout all of this, we focus our eyes and move them together just as in the reading process.
When should a child have his/her first eye examination?
Your baby should have his or her first visual examination at 6 months of age or sooner if a problem is evident. If you notice your baby's eyes turning outward or inward (lasting more than a few seconds) or any other signs of eye problems, schedule an appointment with a doctor experienced in examining infants.
InfantSee doctors are experienced in examining infants.
Dr. Jill A. Kronberg, a Residency Trained Pediatric Optometrist with Artisan Optics in Boise, participates in the InfantSee program. Dr. Kronberg provides no cost eye examinations for all babies younger than 1 year old (prior to their first birthday).
How do I know if my preschooler has a vision problem?
Watch for indication of any delays in development, which may signal the presence of a vision problem. Difficulty with recognition of colors, shapes, letters and numbers can occur if there is a vision problem.
Why does my child have trouble playing sports?
Outdoor games and sports are an enjoyable and important part of most children's lives. Whether playing catch in the back yard or participating in team sports at school, vision plays an important role in how well a child performs.
A child who consistently underperforms a certain skill in a sport, such as always hitting the front of the rim in basketball or swinging late at a pitched ball in baseball, may have a vision problem. If visual skills are not adequate, the child may continue to perform poorly.
Is vision learned or inherited?
We learn to see over time, much like we learn to walk or talk. We are not born with all the visual abilities we need in life. The ability to focus our eyes, move them accurately, and use them together as a team must be learned. We also need to learn how to use the visual information the eyes send to our brain in order t understand the world around us and interact with it appropriately.
We do, however, inherit the tendency to be either nearsighted or farsighted from our parents. Myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism tend to run in families; as do es ADD, ADHD and autism.
My child dislikes reading. Could this be a vision problem?
Children with convergence insufficiency will start out satisfactorily, but after a short period of working up close will find it difficult to continue reading due to the amount of difficulty with their vision.
Their tendency to look away will make them appear to be disinterested, or have a poor attention span. These same children will appear more interested when they are being read to, or listening. They will then be labeled "attention deficit" or "lazy" when they are simply limited based on their visual abilities.


To the likely delight of the stumbling Romney campaign, Benjamin Netanyahu threw a temper tantrum, after a week of warnings from his allies, bulldozing his way into the Presidential race and attempting to blackmail the American political establishment into joining him in an unnecessary war of aggression against Iran. The last three years have been an amazing case of the tail wagging the dog. The United States is committed to the preservation of Israel. But both are sovereign nations with independent interests. Yet the entire Republican party and a large chunk of the Democratic party have essentially sworn fealty to Israel and given Netenyahu carte blanche in the West Bank. Even worse they have backed the Obama administration into a position likely to lead to a premptive war.
The war drums on Iran are insane. Nobody has proven that Iran actually wants to build a nuclear weapon. Many people think, what Iran actually wants is what Japan has – the ability to build one if needed. And that unfortunately is not explicitly barred by the ridiculous Non Proliferation Treaty. Maintaining a nuclear arsenal is expensive and if that is the goal, it would be a smart one. Iran having a nuclear weapon or the capacity is highly undesirable, because it would remove a check on their actions and would trigger a domino effect in the region. Yet it would not be the end of the world. The far more psychotic North Korean regime has one and has been contained.
Contrary to propaganda, Iran's Ayatollahs have shown a high sense of personal preservation. During the Iran-Iraq war the actually issued a decree allowing deviation from Islamic tenets when national interest was at stake. This is not a behavior of a bunch of suicidal zealots. Oh and one other thing – Israel has nuclear weapons and is under the United States nuclear umbrella. Iran would have to be batshit crazy to launch a strike on Israel.
The other problem is that a military strike almost certainly will not work. For one thing, Israel may not have the capacity for such a long range strike even if it wanted to. In that case Netanyahu's statement that "[t]hose in the international community who refuse to put red lines before Iran don't have a moral right to place a red light before Israel," is even more offensive. Because it requires active American assistance in a war he wants to start even if America does not want to join. And by pulling this stunt just before a presidential election he is counting on the craven Mitt Romney attacking President Obama for "abandoning" Israel. Worse, even an American bombing campaign would at best delay Iran's program, would likely make up their mind to actually build the bomb, would make it easier for the mullahs to make their countrymen rally around the flag and could send the global economy into a spiral.
Its not as if the Israeli establishment is united around the war drums. Israeli Defense Minister (and former prime minister) Ehud Barak is a hawk on Iran too. But he appears to have recognized the wisdom of trying to blackmail the United States at such a delicate time. Netanyahu is playing a dangerous game here. Most Americans oppose a war with Iran. Israel has benefited from bipartisan political support in the United States. If Netanyahu's gambit helps throw the election to Romney (or is perceived to have done so), the backlash for Israel will be severe.
Increasing numbers of Americans (and for that matter American Jews) are no longer willing to give Israel free rein with the Palestinians. Netanyahu's tendency to refer to such critics as anti-Semites or self-hating Jews does not help matters. The brazen gambit by Netanyahu also reaffirms why all of his western allies – including the last 3 American presidents – distrust and dislike him.
It appears that calmer heads may be prevailing for now. However, I am pessimistic that this will be the last war gambit before the election.
The neo-cons, theo-cons and other clowns who helped generate the Iraq fiasco are back with a vengeance. This time the target has shifted east to a country with five times the population. The world will be a better place without Iran's loathsome regime. It dispensed with its veneer of popular support and democracy by rigging the presidential election three years ago. It has cheerfully backed entities such as Hezbollah. And the nuclear program is a cause for concern and could start a nuclear domino effect in an unstable neighborhood.
Yet the clamor for war is profoundly misguided. Iran is a third rate military power with a crumbling economy. The recent round of sanctions have all but brought its economy to its knees and almost made it impossible for Iran to conduct foreign exchange transactions. Iran's mullahs may speak in apocalyptic terms but have never displayed suicidal instincts. Ayatollah Khomeini wrote an open letter in 1986 to the present Supreme Leader (who was at the time the president of the Islamic Republic) asserting that if the survival of the Islamic regime was at stake, even the basic tenets of the religion could be shut down to protect the Islamic system from destruction. Like tyrants everywhere the ayatollahs have a fine sense of self-preservation.
Almost no military expert has asserted that a surgical strike like Israel's 1981 attack on the Osirak reactor in Iraq and its 2007 attack on a Syrian nuclear project would stop Iran's nuclear program. The distances are too great, the sites are too spread out (and many are buried deep underground beyond the reach of Israeli bombs) and Israel may not have the military capacity to pull off such an assault. The result of such a strike would probably simply delay the Iranian march to the bomb (a popular policy goal that has been an Iranian dream since the reign of the last Shah) and convince the regime that only a nuclear device will protect it from future assaults (a lesson that the North Koreans appear to have taken from Saddam Hussein's demise). Eliminating the current nuclear program would probably require a sustained bombing campaign (which would require American help), lead to far greater civilian casualties and further rile anti-American sentiment in the Arab world. And then there is the added economic shock of spiking oil prices and Iran unleashing its proxies in the region.
Finally the American army needs a break. The United States army was trained to fight the Red Army tank divisions in the plains of Central Europe. Yet for the last decade it has been fighting two draining counter-insurgency campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan. Even the best trained army in the world can only take so much. It is a factor that must be considered before the chickenhawks send the army into yet another poorly thought out war.
There has been a tendency in the past decade to compare every nasty regime to Hitler. Hitler ruled the most populous and industrialized state in Europe whose industrial regions (unlike France) had not been damaged by World War I. He had an extremely well trained army and the industrial complex to support rearmament and conquest. Saddam, Gaddafi, Assad and the Iranian mullahs do not come close to measuring up. The Iranian army has never recovered from the purges after the fall of the Shah. Iran's domestic politics force the regime to shower goodies on the revolutionary guard at the expense of the army at large. Barring the rally around the flag effect from a foreign attack, Iran's youth despises its regime. With much of the world rallied around the United States in enforcing sanctions against Iran, a war makes no sense at this time.
The loudest cheerleader for war has been Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu – over the advice of many of his own military advisers. This blogger's inner cynic notes that banging the war drums has allowed Netanyahu to avoid tough decisions on illegal settlement expansion in the West Bank that is slowly strangling what remains of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. At present the Iranian regime is on its knees, the Syrian regime is struggling to survive, Hezbollah's enthusiastic embrace of Assad is destroying its domestic support base and Hamas appears to have lost its Syrian support. A far sighted statesman would seize the favorable strategic environment to finalize a deal with the Palestinians (who do need to come to terms with the fact that the right of return is simply not happening). But then other than his enablers in the United States and the irredentist wing in Israel, nobody has accused Mr. Netanyahu of visionary statesmanship.
Barack Obama has held off the war cries for the last three years. Here's hoping he holds strong in the face of a media campaign from people whose credibility should have been shot after Iraq.
The regime of the longest ruling non-royal in the world is crumbling and the amount of blood likely to be spilled in its death throes should easily surpass that shed so far in the other Arab states. Used to pariah status in the west, Muammar Gaddafi was always unlikely to bow to international pressure of the type that cowed Baharain's al-Khalifas. True to form, his regime reacted to protests this week with bullets. With limited media and internet access, distinguishing fact from fiction in Libya is hard. But it does appear that the regime's forces shot to kill and the death toll was high.
And then things appear to have spiraled out of Gaddafi's control. Unlike Egypt and Tunisia, Libya is still a tribal society. Gaddafi's tribal balancing act appears to have collapsed when he ordered his troops to open fire. Reports indicate that parts of his army switched sides enabling insurgents to seize control of Benghazi, Libya's second largest city, and the fighting has now spread to Gaddafi's home turf of Tripoli. The Warfala tribe, one of Libya's largest, may have turned on Gaddafi as well.
Western countries who allowed the lure of Libya's oil reserves to seduce them into rehabilitating Gaddafi can only sit and watch as this bloody denouement plays itself out. The fall of Gaddafi would be truly momentous and will cause more and more Arab autocrats to doubt the fealty of their armies. A sign of the times is a letter sent by senior commanders of Iran's revolutionary guard to their commanding officer promising not to open fire on demonstrators. If true, and if it holds up, Iran's rulers may soon be faced with a popular revolution instead of the reformation sought by the Green Revolution two years ago. In the latest bout of Iranian protests, the vitriol is increasingly directed at the true leader of Iran's autocracy, the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, instead of the President Ahmadinejad.
Protests also appear to have spread to Morocco. The still popular King Mohammed VI once allegedly indicated that he wished to emulate Spain's democracy bringing King Juan Carlos rather than his own father King Hassan II. While Morocco may have eased up on the worst excesses of Hassan's reign, it is time for the still absolute monarch to emulate his political idol more completely.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's worried rulers have promised to support the al-Khalifas of Bahrain. The nature of that support is still unclear and for now Bahrain appears to have walked back from the brink.
With the Middle East convulsing, it will be interesting to see if the virus of unrest casts a wider web. China's rulers are on edge and Venezuela's caudillo appears to be uncharacteristically quiet. The next wobbly domino should emerge soon.
The more interesting question is whether the U.S. is able to acknowledge that major and rising powers do not share its preoccupations and to adjust expectations of their cooperation with U.S. policy accordingly. Washington isn't likely to abandon its fixation on Iran's nuclear program, but it should give the administration some pause that it has just publicly endorsed permanent Security Council status for what is, in fact, one of the chief "rogue" nuclear states in the world. This is not a criticism of the administration's engagement of India. On the contrary, the administration's correct dealing with India stands as a rebuke to the administration's Iran policy. Further, the favorable treatment shown to nuclear-armed India confirms that states that never join and flatly ignore the requirements of the NPT and go on to build and test nuclear weapons are not censured or isolated in the least. Instead, they are rewarded with good relations and high status.
The assignment of "rogue" status to India and Iran based on pursuit of nuclear weapons is a false equivalency. For one major reason – India refused to sign the NPT because of its arbitrary limitation of nuclear powers to the five who got there first. Iran (and North Korea – which has since withdrawn from the treaty) signed the NPT and by pursuing nuclear weapons violated its treaty obligations. Larison fails to explain why a country falls into rogue status for not abiding by the requirements of a treaty it never accepted in developing its own nuclear weapons. I make the distinction because non-signatory Pakistan earned its rogue status not for testing its own nukes, but for selling them to North Korea and Libya. The stark contrast to Pakistan along with Indian assurances that they would not be the first to use nuclear weapons in any conflict (a commitment not offered by the United States which during the Cold War felt itself to be at a conventional weapons disadvantage) is among the factors contributing to India's special treatment (a booming economy does not hurt).
Left unsaid is the fact that the third non-signatory to the NPT, Israel appears to have been developed its own nuclear arsenal through NPT violations by Western Powers and apartheid South Africa (which renounced the bomb shortly before the transfer of power to Nelson Mandela).
That said Larison has a point in noting an element of hypocrisy in the wailing about Iran's nuclear program. However that does not stem from the treatment of India. It is ultimately rooted in the NPT's arbitrary designation of permitted nuclear weapon states that has miserably failed to stop the domino effect of countries seeking the bomb.
More to the point, if the administration had what it wanted and India were on the Security Council as a permanent member with veto powers, how much weaker would U.N. sanctions against Iran have had to be to satisfy India? Put another way, if India is ready to be considered such an acceptable and responsible power, what does Indian indifference to Iran's nuclear program tell us about the rationality of our government's obsessive hostility towards the same?
The Indian posture is not very different from that of the Russians and the Chinese. None of the three shares America's hostile relationship with Tehran. While none is eager to see an Iranian nuke they are not hyperventilating about it like the United States or Israel. It is not clear that India would have diluted the sanctions against Iran even further than the Russians and the Chinese. Most likely and in the finest traditions of modern Indian diplomacy, it would have abstained – a posture that will have to gradually change if India wants to be taken seriously as a great power.
It is about time Washington appreciated that countries have different interests and policies – something that was lost in the first George W. Bush term as the Cheney/Rumsfeld duo went out of the way to alienate anybody who did not kowtow to American policy. If the United States wants a puppet in the Security Council, it already has the United Kingdom. It is also important to note that while Obama endorsed India's permanent membership of the Security Council, he did not say anything about the veto power. Frankly granting another 4 members (Japan, India, Brazil and probably South Africa) the veto power would make the Security Council even more irrelevant than it already is.
Maybe I should not be surprised that the Washington Post published this blather from David Broder. The last couple of years it has cheerfully published factually inaccurate or outright propaganda columns from George Will, Charles Krauthammer and (the torture supporter) Marc Thiessen. It also published Dinesh D'Souza's garbage about the roots of Barack Obama's ideology.
Somehow Broder seems to forget that we already fought two expensive wars in the last decade and primarily managed to blow up the deficit (with a lot of the money wasted abroad it produced almost no stimulative effects back home). Saber rattling with Iran will also drive up oil prices which could lead to a double dip recession. Even though Broder does not actually advocate bombing Iran he seems to assume that Iran will remain motionless while we ramp up preparations for war. It has proxies in Iraq and Lebanon that can be unleashed against the United States and Israel. The threat of war will also allow Iran's isolated autocrats to rally support at home.
Since Broder's column is essentially calling for more government spending to stimulate the economy, maybe he should call for spending on our infrastructure and education instead of fueling an already over-bloated military-industrial complex.
The LA Times has an article about the emerging showdown between the next round of the confrontation between the Iranian regime and the opposition on the 22nd of Bahman (February 11), the 31st anniversary of the Iranian revolution. See link. In recent days the regime has tried to decapitate the opposition with executions, arrests and attempts to suggest that opposition Presidential candidates Mousavi and Karroubi had conceded defeat. But as previously noted the strength (and weakness) of the Iranian protests is the absence of a leader whose removal will demoralize the protesters. While the regime has not hesitated to use batons and occasionally bullets to disperse the crowds, it has not yet brought (or has been unable to bring) tanks on the streets to decisively crush the opposition like the Syrians did at Hama and the Chinese did at Tiananmen. Till then the world can draw inspiration from the dogged protesters in the street and hope that the men with the guns will have a change of heart.
Meanwhile neocons are still equally dogged in their determination to bomb Iran, however pointless and self-defeating the attack will be. See link to the latest by Daniel Pipes. Also see link. One of the lines of attack seems to be to keep referring to the Iranian regime as "apocalyptic" even though since its inception the Iranian regime has been ruthlessly pragmatic in its primary goal – survival. A regime allegedly rooted in Islam has even given itself the right to suspend Sharia law in the interests of the state (a marked difference from the Saudis and the Taliban). Even North Korea, whose actions are significantly more irrational and unpredictable, has demonstrated that nuclear weapons are primarily being used as a deterrent. There seems little evidence (other than verbal broadsides) that the Iranian regime with its lust for power and keen eye for survival would not do the same.
UPDATE: Here is a link to the latest Juan Cole column about the scaremongering and hyperbole that American policy makers (Hillary Clinton) and neo-con pundits keep coming up with to inflate the military threat from militarily weak third world countries. When Barack Obama pointed out this fact in the 2008 eight presidential campaign, that Iran is hardly the existential threat that the Soviet Union was he was pilloried for it. Here is one blogger who is glad that the occupant of the White House has the ability to keep things in perspective.
Here is an amusing story from Iran. In a seeming reaction to the "Green Revolution" that brought thousands of protesters into the streets this summer, Iran's regime seems to have reacted by taking the green band in Iran's flag and turning it to blue. See here and here. Before rigging the elections this summer, the regime had warned the opposition not to attempt a "color" revolution as seen in other parts of the world (Orange in the Ukaraine, Rose in Georgia, etc.). This is a move steeped in multiple ironies. Green is the representative color for Islam and is now possibly being disowned by a putative Islamic regime. Replacing green with blue turns would result in the Iranian flag sharing the red, white and blue combination of the two "Great Satans" of the regime – the United States and the United Kingdom. For additional humor inherent in this situation, see the cartoon below that ran during the summer and was reposted on Andrew Sullivan's site today. See link.
'Khamenei Tears Green Stripe (Associated with Mousavi) Off Iranian Flag' Cartoonist: Jihad 'Awartani, Source: Al-Watan (Saudi Arabia), June 26, 2009.
In the week long hiatus taken in my blogging activities, the expected protests in Iran have taken place. The obtuse decision to treat all mourners at Ayatollah Montazeri's funeral as protesters and shedding blood on Ashura, the Iranian regime is providing further proof of its ideological bankruptcy. However, as has been noted many times in this blog the tipping point will not come until a sizable portion of the security forces refuses to shed further blood of their countrymen.
In the meantime the regime tries to brutally send a message by targeting relatives of some of the leaders of the protest – like killing the nephew of presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi or arresting the non-political sister of Shirin Ebadi. However, neither of them or even the brave Mehdi Karroubi appears to be the driving force behind the protests.
Iran's youth (70% of the population is under 30) is making its displeasure felt. Unlike 1979 there is no charismatic figure like Ayatollah Khomieni waiting in the wings. While this could make it harder to topple the regime, it also makes it harder for the regime to scuttle the protests by eliminating a select leadership.
In some ways the Rubicon was thoroughly crossed this week. The Supreme Leader can no longer count on the presumed sanctity of his office to protect him. The crowds in the street are now baying for his blood. With some people talking of an Iranian intifada, even the crushing of the current round of protests will only trigger more ferment down the road. The regime can only hope for some external action (of the sort that Messers Netenyahu and the neo-cons would love to provide) that will save their regime. Here's hoping they do not get an excuse to force the protesters to rally around a regime they despise.
As expected the death of Ayatollah Montazeri has brought the crowds back on Iranian streets and the regime predictably tried to tarnish his memory. Abbas Milani at TNR has a great profile of the man would have been Supreme Leader but for the fact he had a conscience. The trauma caused to the United States by the embassy takeover and the international loss of face has often blinded Americans to the fact that the Islamic revolution toppled a tyrant (albeit one who ultimately flinched at the thought of firing at the crowds in a manner that did not faze Hafez Assad in Syria or the Chinese regime in the next decade) and that the new regime had broad public backing at inception.
However, the founders of the Islamic Republic of Iran ultimately fell prey to the same moral vacuum that stained past revolutions and led to the Reign of Terror, the Great Purges, the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. Like the French, Russian and Chinese Revolutions before it, the Iranian regime replaced a repressive regime that was far more brutal and had fewer qualms in killing its own citizens. Montazeri deserves credit for having the moral authority to stand up for to Ayatollah Khomeini and protest the wanton massacre of the regime's opponents. For this he suffered house arrest and political exile but earned the respect of his countrymen. It is hardly surprising that the morally and ideologically bankrupt regime is desperately trying to tarnish his name and disrupt his funeral services. However, by turning him into a martyr they are generating a backlash against the Supreme Leader.
Just how much force the regime is willing to use and whether the mobs will peter out will be evident in the coming days.
Grand Ayatollah Hoseyn Ali Montazeri has died. One of the intellectual creators of the Islamic revolution and originally the designated successor to Ayatollah Khomeini, he was exiled from political power in 1989 for daring to question the abysmal human rights record of the regime and warning that it was using Islam to create a dictatorship. A concerned regime placed him under house arrest in 1997 only releasing him a few years later when he fell ill to avoid the backlash that his death under arrest would cause. Many Iranians considered him to be the legitimate "Supreme Leader," particularly since he outranked the current Supreme Leader Khamenei in the religious hierarchy. Montazeri came to the forefront this summer when he condemned the blatant rigging of the Presidential election. His death and his funeral will likely become another occasion for the tensions simmering in Iran to reappear on the street. More lies turmoil ahead for Iran. A brave man who dared stand up to the repression of the Shah and the Ayatollahs and who dared question the legitimacy of the Supreme Leader, Montazeri will be missed.
After an unexpected hiatus from blogging activities, kick starting the first post of the week with some thoughts on events that would have merited longer posts at the time.
I liked the general tenor of Barack Obama's speech but was amused to see some of the blinders come off on the left and the right as a result. Liberals unhappy about the decision on Afghanistan saw the president expound a doctrine of just war which in some ways could have been delivered by George W. Bush. Conservatives who had convinced themselves that Obama was a weak anti-war liberal seem to have heard for the first time that the President does not rule out war (they seem to have forgotten his comment in the campaign that he was only against "stupid wars" (though he left may argue that the Afghan escalation IS a stupid war). Time will tell whether the "Obama Doctrine" fares better than the "Bush Doctrine." With its understanding of the limitations of American power, it does have a greater chance of success.
The Indian government dropped a bombshell with the creation of a new state. Will discuss the virtues and pitfalls of smaller states in the Indian constitutional context later this week, but words cannot describe how badly the decision making process was bungled. First the government gave in to emotional blackmail of a hunger strike, then nobody seems to have discussed the decision with the local government and laid the groundwork, and the critical question of who gets Hyderabad still remains unanswered. The abrupt decision making process has also suddenly brought to the forefront demands for at least 9 new states. Before the virtues of these demands are assessed, first the Indian government deserves brickbats for sheer incompetence.
The Iranian regime returns Shirin Ebadi's Nobel peace prize medal. Previous blog here.
One of the two Chicago men arrested for planning a terrorist attack in Denmark seems to be singing about his involvement in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. Not surprisingly, India wants him extradited.
More unrest on Iran's streets and campuses. See here, here, and here. As the protests have dragged on they have become more brazen in insulting the Supreme Leader Khamenei. The desperate regime has started targeting the protesters globally, arresting mothers mourning their children killed in the protests, and lately assaulting presidential candidate Mousavi and his wife. And even in the face of the batons of the Basij and the guns of the revolutionary guard the brave students of Iran continue to march and protest. The hope for Iran is that as the protests continue and the support base of the regime weakens the men with guns start to waver, and messers Benjamin Netanyahu, Avigdor Lieberman and their bomb first ask questions later enablers in the United States do not do something stupid to prop up an intellectually bankrupt regime.
Christopher Hitchens complains about how the saga of the party crashers overshadowed the visit of Manmohan Singh to the United States and vents about the state of media coverage. This is hardly a new phenomenon, though it seems to have got worse in the last 20 years. From my viewpoint the O. J. Simpson circus, I mean trial, was the start of this nonsense. It showed when the media cut away from Clinton's state of the union address to announce the civil verdict against OJ.
The Economist's Banyan on how North Korea in the finest traditions of bankrupt regimes "revalued" its currency and robbed its citizens.
More Afghan perceptions on Obama's speech.
A depressing read on how the Taliban is wrecking the rich Buddhist heritage of the region and threatening museums in Pakistan.
The Economist cites a Stephen Walt column on how German unifier Otto von Bismarck's realism may be a guide on a realistic foreign policy to ease tensions in the world and tackle Iran. It is an interesting theory, but historical analogies don't always fit. Bismarck's concert of powers was ultimately doomed because Russia and Austria-Hungary's ambitions (along with their proxies Serbia and Bulgaria) clashed in the Balkans and an over-powerful Germany clashed with the traditional British agenda since the Spanish Armada of preventing any one power from dominating the European continent. These tensions were already evident by the time of Bismarck's unceremonious dismissal.
How far will Dubai's woes rein in Sheikh Makhtoum's ambitious agenda? It gives conservative Abu Dhabi a lot more leverage.
Reacting to the recent IAEA censure, the Iranian regime has reacted with a show of petulance announcing 10 new uranium enrichment plants for uranium it does not have. The IAEA vote was significant in that Iran got no support from countries it could rely on in the past including Russia, China, India and South Africa. Even though Brazil has resisted joining the international chorus, more reactions like the one this Sunday could fritter away any goodwill Iran possesses for its legal position that even the Non Proliferation Treaty allows Iran to enrich uranium for civilian use. However, the NPT requires transparency in Iranian actions which has not been forthcoming. The Iranian reaction may also point to continuing tensions within the regime on how to proceed without losing face. The question is whether this back and forth forces Russia and China to join in a meaningful sanctions regime (which is useless without them) and how soon, if ever, this happens.
The latest gambit by the Iranian regime in its attempt to squash dissent. In what appears to be a first, they have now seized the Nobel Peace Prize medal awarded to Shirin Ebadi. The official justification appears to be back taxes owed for the $1.3 million award, which Ebadi claims is no subject to tax. The regime has now frozen her bank account and may try to seize her home.
Inflicting financial pain is hardly a new tactic for repressive regimes. However, seizing the medal smacks of pettiness that will hold up the Iranian regime to deserved ridicule.
George Gavrilis suggests a closer look at the resolution of the Tajik civil war for the type of state system that may eventually emerge in Afghanistan. While it is an interesting thought, Tajikistan did not have the same ethnic and sectarian tensions Afghanistan did and nor was it a proxy playing grounds for its neighbors.
Another look at the relative unknowns chosen as Europe's President and Foreign Minister.
How the fears of a swine flu epidemic may have been cynically used as a gambit in Ukraine's presidential election.
How Hezbollah has used a loophole in Shiite marriage law to satisfy the libido of its foot soldiers.
Time for the gathering of the Muslim faithful in Mecca for another Hajj, this event being overshadowed by swine flu fears and the political drama from Iran.
The New York Times reviews the recent air strikes conducted by the Saudi Air Force in Yemen and the risk of a proxy fight with Iran. The article also has a brief but good overview of the complex religious schisms within Islam at play in Yemen. It has been close to 50 years since the Saudis had to deal with a proxy fight on their southwestern flank. In the 1960s the Saudis were sucked into a civil war in Yemen after Nasser inspired rebels toppled the Yemeni monarchy. Unlike Nasser, the Iranians will not be able to send ground troops into Yemen. For them it will be a proxy fight akin to their arming of Hezbollah – relatively low cost but high rewards from the likely Yemeni and Saudi overreaction.
Kevin Drum on the practical limitations the United States has on sanctioning Iran. With Iran repeatedly backtracking on the recent nuclear deal, recent opinion pieces have touted harsh sanctions to change the regime's behavior. The problem with sanctions in recent years from Burma to Zimbabwe has been their limited utility in changing behavior. But, Iran is more tied into the world, economically and culturally, than either of those two rogue states. A smart sanction regime could have some effect. But that is feasible only if Russia and China go along with them. At present that does not seem likely.


This jersey dress by MONA is a must-have, if you are looking for a fashionable jersey dress a v-neck. Beautifully detailed with a stripe pattern. Thanks to the immaculate cut our jersey dress is a true customer favourite. This jersey dress by MONA is just one click away.


Bel Viso Medspa™ is where the world of beauty meets advanced medical technology to provide you with a higher level of care. Our Mission is to deliver extraordinary esthetic and pain alleviation treatments to our patients. At Bel Viso MedSpa™ everyone can put their best self forward in a way that is both rewarding and convenient. We accomplish this by offering complimentary consultations, affordable pricing and by striving every day to make people look healthy, youthful, and rejuvenated by delivering the best treatment experience possible.
Our team is carefully selected based on their professional training, esthetic experience, and warm personalities. We are committed to building meaningful relationships with our patients by clearly understanding their individual needs to guarantee the best possible results. The Bel Viso Medspa™ team is trained exclusively by the industry leaders in both facial esthetics and body beautification. Our team dedication to complete patient safety and customer satisfaction, affordable pricing and the ultimate in convenience makes the Bel Viso Experience unlike any other. Come in today to begin your personalized journey.
The Bel Viso Experience is why people keep coming back. It goes beyond outstanding results. It means dedication, attention to detail, honesty and integrity. The Bel Viso Experience is excellence personified. From the moment you walk through our door, our team works together with you to achieve the outcome you desire. Each step of the process is carefully discussed beforehand and your satisfaction is our top priority. Call today for the Bel Viso Experience!


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www.fnsr.org
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Soft diplomacy in the Indian Ocean Region will serve India better
New Delhi has clearly opted for a charm offensive in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). The red carpet laid out for the visiting Seychelles President Danny Faure last week came against the backdrop of setbacks in the bilateral relationship owing to the Assumption Island agreement being put on hold. The pact, to build a naval base on the island, was seen as a major strategic enhancement of India's IOR naval capacities and had been under discussion since 2003. It was finally signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the Seychelles in 2015. The deal was to include 30-year access to the base as well as permission to station Indian military personnel on the ground, with facilities on the island funded by India, owned by Seychelles and jointly managed. After Opposition protests about loss of sovereignty, however, it had to be renegotiated and an amended version was signed in January 2018. Even that proved insufficient. Mr. Faure lacks the numbers in the legislature to ratify it, and with the Opposition sticking to its stand he announced in early June he would not be taking the agreement with India forward. Instead, Seychelles would build the naval facility "on its own". Given the blow to India's plans, Mr. Faure may well have expected a cold reception in India. However, both sides decided to walk around the minefields relating to Assumption Island, with Mr. Modi saying they would work on the project "keeping in mind each other's interests". India also announced a credit line of $100 million for Seychelles to purchase defence equipment from India to build its maritime capacity, offered to finance civilian infrastructure including the official buildings, and handed over a Dornier aircraft for maritime surveillance purposes.
This is good strategy. It would have been pointless to push the SeychellesPresident for a more concrete assurance on the Assumption Island project, as he has little room for manoeuvre. India had earlier drawn a blank in attempting to negotiate directly with the Seychelles Opposition leader, Wavel Ramkalawan, who is of Indian origin. Until 2020-21, when Seychelles is due for presidential and parliamentary elections, it may not be possible to move the agreement further for ratification; rather than renegotiate or cancel it entirely, it is best to keep it in abeyance. This softer approach adopted by the government is in remarkable contrast to the strong-arm tactics it has used in the past with other countries in the IOR, such as the Maldives. India's very public statements against the Abdulla Yameen government have now led to a considerable setback to its strategic position there, with the Maldives insisting on sending back Indian naval and coast guard helicopters from its atolls. A less confrontational approach in the case of Seychelles, with quiet negotiations instead of public recrimination, indeed appears to have had a more salutary effect.
INSAR Editorial Board
Amb. C.R. Gharekhan
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Sh. Chandrajit Banerjee
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Prof. R. Rajaraman
Amb. M. Rasgotra
Amb. Meera Shankar
Amb. Kanwal Sibal
India's National Security
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Pakistan Watch
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Dermot Kennedy to play 'dream come true' Coachella gig
Updated / Thursday, 3 Jan 2019 21:08
Dermot Kennedy - "A dream come true"
Irish singer Dermot Kennedy is to play at Coachella, the world-famous music festival that takes place in California in April, and has described joining the bill as "a dream come true".
Kennedy has not yet released an album but has sold over 75,000 tickets worldwide in the past year.
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The Dubliner's song Power Over Me has generated over 300m global streams and 2.5m monthly listeners on Spotify alone.
His May 2019 tour has been sold out at O2 Academy Brixton, Manchester's Albert Hall and four nights at Dublin's Olympia Theatre.
He is part of YouTube Music's 'Ones to Watch 2019', the first-ever artist spotlight list from the music platform which predicts the hottest new acts.
Kennedy has tweeted about how excited he is to be playing at Coachella, saying it is "surreal".
I'M PLAYING @COACHELLA! This is surreal. A dream come true. See you soon, California! pic.twitter.com/DGb7cj9TFt
— Dermot Kennedy (@DermotKennedy) January 3, 2019
The festival is no Trip to Tipp or Longitude and instead of a raucous party in the campsite after the music ends, it's lights out at 1am. Facilities include a swimming pool and hot air balloon terminal, while festival-goers can start their day with yoga, followed by a trip to the beauty salon and hairdresser.
US singer Ariana Grande will become the fourth female star to headline Coachella when she takes to the stage in April, following in the footsteps of Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and Bjork. Also headlining are Childish Gambino and Tame Impala.
Last year 40,000 extra people attended the first weekend of Coachella 2018. The festival had been capped at 99,000 the year before. Dublin singer-songwriter Gavin James was the only Irish act on the 2018 bill.
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Click here for more music news.
Dublin's Olympia Theatre
Manchester's Albert Hall
Dermot Kennedy makes BBC Music's Sound of 2019 list


العربية: علم التشريح هو دراسة بنية جسم الإنسان (و الحيوان) و الكائنات الحيّة الأخرى مثل النباتات و الحشرات.
English: Anatomy is the study of the build of the human (and animal) body and other organisms such as plants and insects.
Italiano: L'Anatomia è lo studio del corpo umano e degli altri organismi viventi.
Norsk bokmål: Anatomi er læren om byggningen av menneskers, samt dyr og andre organismers, kropp og struktur.
Polski: Anatomia to nauka zajmująca się budową ciała ludzi, zwierząt i innych organizmów żywych, takich jak rośliny.
Türkçe: Anatomi insan (ve hayvan) gövdesi ve bitkiler ile böcekler gibi diğer organizmaların yapısı üzerine çalışır.
Walon: L' antomeye, c' est l' syince ki discrît tot çou k' gn a dins l' coir d' ene djin.
Place files relating to anatomy in this category. Anatomy is the scientific study of the structure of living things.
Place files relating to bodies but not relating to their scientific study, such as ordinary images of parts of the body, in "Category:Body".
Place files relating to animals in a suitable subcategory of "Category:Animal body".


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Anshan Ao Tong Steel Pipe Co., Ltd.
Cangzhou Shenlong Pipe Mfg. Co., Ltd.


text:
Charitable Interests
The Incorporation of Bonnetmakers and Dyers of Edinburgh
The Incorporation, chartered in 1530, exists today for benevolent and social purposes, to support the good traditions of the past and to foster those skills falling within the widest ambit of Bonnetmaking and Dyeing, including all the Arts.
The Incorporation of Bonnetmakers and Dyers of Edinburgh welcomes to its membership any person interested in its declared purposes, namely, to maintain and promote the wellbeing of the City of Edinburgh, her citizens and the entire country in the widest possible way, relieving poverty and distress, fostering education and good citizenship and the preservation of the good and agreeable traditions of the community, all within the law of charity.
The Incorporation arranges visits for members and their guests to exhibitions and businesses of interest to its members and holds its Annual General Meeting at the end of March. It presents an award to a student at Edinburgh College of Art, the criteria being for work involving textiles which demonstrates quality of design and execution and imaginative use of colour. A similar award is also given to a student at Heriot Watt University School of Textiles and Design and at Edinburgh College (the former Telford College), each with a slightly different criteria.
Admission to membership is at the discretion of the Master Court of the Incorporation and on payment of the entry dues.
Copyright The Incorporation of Bonnetmakers and Dyers of Edinburgh © 2013. designed by easyonlineweb All Rights Reserved.


I have a 95 mustang GT and my dash clock is not really working. Some times the clock will work for a few min but most of the time it doesnt light at all, I have noticed when the clock does work the time is still set so thats telling me its still getting power so it can keep the memory. I have removed the plug and check connections and everything seems ok. Is there a chance the clock is going bad thats why it wont light all the time ? or what else could it be because I cant really follow the wires back , they go into a harness.
I would have said, check the wires, but you've done that. Hm, will see if I can look up the wire schematics for the clock to see where it goes.
So, when it's on, it's on normally, but when it's off, it's completely off (but manages to keep the time).
I'd suggest resoldering the connections between the board and the display.
Please promote "Bad dash clock?"
Forums : Interior : Bad dash clock?


Until now, let's face it- we have been spoiled! But finally "old man winter" has delivered a wintery blast and its time for humans to dig out their snow boots and ice scrapers. It's also time to think about keeping our pets safe during these snowy arctic cold days. Here are some tips to keeping your pets safe.
4. When getting your pet groomed, don't have them shaved down to the skin. A longer coat provides more warmth. Bathing your dog? Be sure to completely dry them before taking them out for a walk. For short-haired breeds, put them in a warm sweater with a high collar that gives the pet coverage from the base of their tail to the belly.
9. Rock salt is also dangerous for pets. "Safe Paw" is pet safe ice melt is available for sale at Wayside Waifs and is safe for pets. Wayside sells "Safe Paw" for about $3 less than most retail stores.
This entry was posted on Monday, January 10th, 2011 at 11:55 am	and is filed under . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.


Try to take advantage of the majority of positive moments that you will benefit from, this April. It is important for you to organize your time effectively and leave enough for both work and fun.
Only in this way will your life be harmonious in April and you will be pleased with yourself. You shouldn't have to forget about family, you can visit them even by surprise.
Do not throw your head forward when it comes to love, at least not in April. You will most likely be enchanted by the beautiful words of someone very charming but if something looks like it's too good to be true, then it probably isn't.
Don't be naïve but don't be aloof either, give people chances and watch your back. The journey, especially around the middle of the month, will be quite exciting.
The daily grind might be made more bearable by good company on certain days and you might forge a new friendship. This might also put you in the position to learn something new or even to network for professional purposes as well.
During the first week of April you are struggling hard to keep the lead in a business or a major personal project from, and even if the financial potential motivates you very much, there are certain issues that are demoralizing you.
Stay strong in positions, even if the pressure is getting bigger! This personal project may take several weeks or even months, so get ready for a long race!
Saturn and Pluto will be with you so keep in mind that no matter how much you exasperate about a problem, it is temporary and the end will definitely be a success!
Luck is on your side: in the twelfth hour, an influential person will give you the help, and everything will work out. You just have to ... have little patience!
Some travels are on the horizon and might be as demanding as the rest of your tasks this month. You're lucky with an energy infusion from the New Moon in Aries, that debuts on the 5th, so you'll have enough resources to get past all the hindrances!
A special joy will bring you, around the 20th, the second astral event of the Moon, the Full Moon. This is when you are likely to receive some signals that clearly you are on the right track!
The same day it's time to take action if you wanted to take an initiative for some time but did not have the courage. Get your heart in your teeth and go all the way! The stars are on your side!
From April 27th to April 30th, your heart will beat stronger than usual because you will have the most romantic time of the month. Enjoy the spring and all the surprises the stars have prepared for you!
Prepare yourself for a month of April full of adventures and passion, because the stars offer you an aura of eroticism that you can use to seduce, and that is guaranteed. You will be tempted to start a hot affair without sentimental implications, and if you already have a relationship, the time has come for sexual experimentation.
It is good to find ways to communicate with your loved one so you can compose your energies to solve all the consuming tasks that occur this April.
You will still be able to remember and reactivate certain activities that will gladly remind you of the beginnings of your relationship, discovering that the spark has not been lost and that it still feeds on your love affair, especially around the middle of the month.
Your love story continues, and even if you can hardly share your time in this direction, your competitive way of being committed to your life partner will help in this month to allow you some relaxation in two or even with your entire family in well-known environments that do not require sophisticated planning.
Towards the end of the month, the dynamic of the relationship is straightforward but involves some budget spending or money borrowed from others, and if things go wrong, at least one of you may have to take some action mitigating costs, otherwise you may end up in a tricky position.
Professionally, there are no major events for you in April 2019. It is rather a good time for planning, for a balance sheet, to gather your strengths to come back into contact with the inner resources needed for radical career changes.
It's not a good time to come forward but rather to act shyly, discreetly behind the scenes, or to ruminate on what has happened in your professional life lately.
From a financial point of view, things are fine, especially until the 21st of the month. But caution is advised, because you could be fooled into investing in something that is not worth or investing too much at once. It is not advisable to borrow for such matters, especially not from friends or family.
During the second half of the month you may have more business trips or more lively negotiations with a partner or business partner. You need to be patient and not to make hasty conclusions, especially around the 23rd.
It is also time to revise your future projects. You may also find yourself in need to review some of your collaborations and projects that until yesterday you were enthusiastic about.


text:
It's Too Late Lyrics
Lyrics to It's Too Late
It's Too Late Video:
It's too late now for you to say your sorry
It's too late now for you to make amends
You're gonna pay for all the lies you told me
Well don't apologize 'cause it's too late
Much too late
You said those words
You said them much too late
It's too late now for you to sympathize, dear
The wheel of time is grinding 'gainst your dreams
I really wouldn't want to cause no pain now
You said those words, you said them much too late


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package org.ngrinder.infra.servlet;

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Working on review responses! I can't update anything until I get the new cord for my computer, but I will ASAP!
A Maid in the Malfoy Manor Amidst The Shadows I Lie An Incomplete Collection Aphrodite Rising Broken Mirrors En Attendant La Nuitt Glass Gone Goodbye To You Harry Potter and the Troll in the Dungeon Hopeless I Will Be Back I Will Never Let You Leave Me Lily's Choice Morocco My Reflection Not Fade Away Numb Redemption One and Only She's the Tempest Stranded in Darkness Supergirl: Through My Eyes Switching with Sirius The Balin Connection The Illusory & Inevitable Future The Insanity of Alice Longbottom The Raven's Ring The Visible Invisible The Wedding Venom We Cannot Lose WHY? BECAUSE I HAVE AN EMOTIONAL RANGE OF A TEASPOON?


How tired are you of seeing your conventional sliding screen door just sitting there covering up the beautiful view of your back yard, or the valley or maybe the ocean view? How many times have you asked yourself "I wish my sliding screen door would just disappear"? or, "Why can't my screen doors just be invisible"?
Well you don't need to ask yourself that anymore, because today if you have just one sliding screen door or many in your home, you can replace them with our new "Retractable Screen Door System".
These Phantom retractable screen doors are very elegant compared to what is out in the market. The market for retractable screen doors has been stifled by a common defect, specifically the speed at which the systems retract (accelerates) into their housing. Until now, this has discouraged many customers with children and home builders concerned about contingent liabilities from installing the retractable door.


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Take action against human trafficking and exploitation today.
The voices of the vulnerable matter.
We live in a world where millions of innocent people are lured away from their families with promises of money and a better life. Once in the hands of traffickers, they're raped for profit or forced into lives of slavery and exploitation, often never to see their families again.
Want to see one of our all time favourite videos that will help bring this topic to life?
Prevent people from being trafficked. The vast majority of victims are vulnerable due to poverty, so our partners provide opportunities to earn a living as well as educate people on the tactics of traffickers.
Release victims of sex trafficking. Our investigators are highly trained in covert surveillance and work with local authorities.
Prosecute those responsible for exploitation by working with the authorities and providing evidence against perpetrators.
Restore survivors' freedom and dignity through rehabilitation programmes involving medical care, safe housing, counselling, and vocational training.
If we don't support our partners with funding, their work falls over. Your one-off donation or regularly monthly support ensures the continued fight against this injustice.
A Child pornography ring destroyed
For the last two years, one of our partners has been working on Operation Blackwrist. Thanks to the collaborative effort of many organisations, 50 precious children were released and 9 sexual offenders across three countries were prosecuted. A website with 63,000 subscribers was brought down.
Our local team on the ground was involved in the police operation that arrested the man administering the child pornography site. They were also involved with identifying victims, representing victims in court, ensuring compensation and supporting the children with aftercare.
Australian Judge Liesl Chapman of Adelaide said of one of the offenders: "You are a child's worst nightmare, you are every parents' horror…"
Zero cases of trafficking in a high-risk area
Another of our partners working in Nepal has seen the cases of human trafficking drop to zero within their project group - an incredible result for a high-risk area close to the Indian border.
This has been achieved through women's empowerment groups. These groups become incredible community support networks, that encourage, provide knowledge and give small business loans to help families to lift themselves out of poverty. They also have a crucial role to play in raising awareness of trafficking.
When communities are not only warned of trafficking, but are given real options to avoid it, we will see more incredible results like this.
The image has been changed to protect Thida's privacy.
Thida's story
Thida grew up with her grandparents in one of the poorest areas of Cambodia after both of her parents died. One day a man came and offered Thida a job in a sewing factory. He promised she'd make good money to send back to her grandparents. He said she would be protected. He lied.
Thida was forced to work 13 hour days in a poorly lit, stifling hot factory. She was 14. Poor work was punished with a cane and threats of further violence. She was paid $3 per day for her efforts and was unable to contact her family.
After two years, Thida was taken to a brothel and forced to sell sex to customers multiple times a day. If she refused, she was beaten. She was there 4 years. At one point Thida lost the will to survive and became ill. In her words, "I was like a sick and broken robot, good only for what my owners wanted from me".
After a traffic accident lead to her escape, Thida was supported by one of our partners. They not only cared for her immediate injuries, but they stuck by her. Over many months, our partner was able to resettle Thida with her grandparents back in the village. They walked with her through trauma counselling and helped her to find dignified employment that she enjoys. Thida dreams of becoming a qualified teacher and loves helping little children to read and write.
Petra, Ido, Olivia and Lulu talk about Modern Slavery
Petra Bagust, Ido Drent and some of our wonderful ambassadors recently got together to talk about what modern slavery is, their own experiences visiting our partners, and what they are doing to try to bring an end to it.
At Tearfund, we are committed to doing whatever it takes for as long as it takes to restore broken lives.
Your gift can make a real difference in this fight against modern slavery:
Could help to fund a social worker - who will walk alongside a survivor as they escape, seek justice and begin to rebuild their lives.
Could support our partners' work with vulnerable communities - to prevent trafficking. By increasing awareness of what trafficking is, but also by increasing families' incomes and options, so they never have to sell a child into modern slavery.
Could help to fund our partners' "intelligence hub" - which is at the forefront of international efforts to identify and rescue victims of trafficking and abuse.
*Tearfund works to protect trafficking survivors' identities so as not to bring them further harm. Images used on this page are recreations.


We are living in a decade where giving customers access to you is vital. You are the business – regardless if you sell a service or a product.
How do you create access when you sell products in a bricks and mortar store?
As you know already, selling online is a powerful way to get in front of the audience you need to sell to. With our e-commerce solutions, we can help you get to that level of exposure.
Wouldn't you love to sell more stock online than you do currently in your shop? It's entirely possible with the vast options for advertising your business online you now have access to.
Get in touch with us now to talk about what you need, how you want to be discovered, and what we can do to make that happen.


The Pennsylvania labor, employment and workers' compensation law firm Willig, Williams & Davidson is proud to announce that 12 of its attorneys have been selected by their peers for inclusion in the 2017 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®, one of the legal profession's oldest and most respected peer-review publications. In addition, partner Ralph J. Teti has been named the Best Lawyers 2017 Labor Law – Union "Lawyer of the Year" for the Philadelphia metro area. Only one attorney in each practice area in a designated metropolitan area is named Lawyer of the Year, making it a singular honor.
The selected attorneys were drawn from the firm's Philadelphia and Harrisburg offices and were recognized for their work in the practice areas of employment law - individuals, labor law – union, labor and employment litigation, and employee benefits (ERISA) law.
The 2017 Best Lawyers include Deborah R. Willig, Alaine S. Williams, Stuart W. Davidson, Nancy B.G. Lassen, Ralph J. Teti, Deborah M. Lerner, Linda M. Martin, Irwin W. Aronson, Amy L. Rosenberger, James S. Beall, Susan Bahme Blumenfeld, and Richard G. Poulson. Several of the attorneys have been named among Best Lawyers for many years, including Willig and Aronson, who are marking more than 25 years on the list, Davidson, who has been named to Best Lawyers for more than 20 years, and Williams, who has been named a Best Lawyer for more than 15 years.
About Willig, Williams & Davidson – Willig, Williams & Davidson (www.wwdlaw.com) is one of the largest and most respected union-side labor law firms in the United States. The firm has offices in Philadelphia, Media, Jenkintown and Harrisburg, Pa., as well as Haddonfield, N.J., and Chicago, Ill. Founded in 1979, Willig, Williams & Davidson focuses on representing labor unions, employee benefit funds and individual working people and their families on a variety of legal fronts, including national, regional and local contract negotiations; dispute resolution through mediation, arbitration and litigation; tax and benefit law compliance issues; discrimination and other employment matters; prepaid legal services for union members; and workers' compensation matters in Philadelphia and beyond.


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Dave & Busted
Investors stopped chewing on Dave & Buster's stock after the release of stale earnings.
Jeremy MacNealy
(jeremy-macnealy)
Dave & Buster's (NYSE:DAB), an operator of restaurant and entertainment complexes, took an 8.8% hit to its stock after the release of its latest earnings report. For a company that specializes in fun, it's unlikely that many shareholders were filled with giggles and grins after the latest drop.
So what caused investors to lose their appetite for D&B's stock? Stale-tasting earnings that limped forward 2.8% to $7.2 million, compared with the $7 million of net income in the year-ago period.
But even though its earnings struck out, the company did score a hit with its revenues. Total sales were up 21.4% to $121.4 million. Revenue from food and beverages increased 26%, while entertainment sales grew 15.9% for the quarter.
How can sales go up, but earnings be down? The answer is found somewhere in the vicinity of its expenses. Food and beverage costs rocketed 25% to $16.3 million, while total operating expenses for the quarter were $86.1 million, higher by 24.6% compared with a year ago. D&B blamed a part of its higher operating costs on Sarbanes-Oxley compliance.
The end result is a quarter that produced flat earnings growth at $0.46 per share. For the year, though, earnings were $0.87 per share, up from $0.79 a year ago. And looking ahead, the consensus among analysts is for D&B to bring in net income of $1.18 per share for the current fiscal year. But given its recent struggles, this expectation appears a tad high. If D&B maintains the present pace of 10% EPS growth, then we can expect around $0.96 per share for the current year.
At a price of around $16.50, D&B's stock is valued at 17 times current-year earnings. Using a blended growth rate of 15%, this stock is not terribly expensive. That said, Foolish investors looking to outdo the market average will want to look for a deeper discount before picking up shares.
Looking for further Foolish analysis on D&B? Check out these articles:
D&B A-OK
Is D&B Down and Broken?
Dave & Buster's Plays On
Not Totally Entertained
Dave & Bustin' Loose
Fool contributor Jeremy MacNealy does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned.
Dave & Busted @themotleyfool #stocks Next Article


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Part III: "Failure is not an option."
(excerpted from The Pipeline)
"This is the direction in which RB Builders is headed", said the CEO, "and your choice to continue your cynicism has a life expectancy of about 30 more seconds."
The intrepid, results-based consultant looked over at the senior superintendent, shrugged, and said, "Now, that – that was a speech.
"I do agree with your point", she said, turning her attention back to the CEO. "But, you know, it is possible to fail, without being the least bit cynical about its prospects. I would say this: Whether you are cynical or not, change is up to you. Whether any of this works or not, is up to each of you individually, all of you collectively.
"If I did not believe RB Builders would make it work, I would not be here, my firm would not accept you as a client. We would not waste our time. After all, my firm and I have a bigger dog in this fight than anyone else.
"When we started out on this little adventure, I told you that my consulting firm would be compensated on the same performance basis as everyone else", she reminded them. "I told you that there was no limit to the time and effort my firm – and I personally – would expend to achieve the outcomes we targeted together. I told you that I would work hand-in-hand with you, and do whatever it takes to achieve those goals. I assured you that I would do whatever it took to foster a willingness and capacity for change, create a sustainable capability for implementing the things that would continuously improve operating performance and business outcomes, increase innovation and learning, and make you less dependent on all of your consultants. I told you, from the standpoint of how the credit was attributed, that I was content to remain in the background.
"Those were the assurances I gave you", she said. "In return, I sought and received assurances from you.
"You agreed that this was a true client-consultant partnership, and that – because my firm's compensation was completely results-based, of finite duration, and self-funding – my firm was assuming the higher level of risk. You agreed that this new, results-focused consulting arrangement we were jointly undertaking provided ample incentive to everyone for taking action, making changes, and improving operating performance and business outcomes.
"I told you that I was as serious as a heart attack about getting results. I made it clear that I had no intention of wasting my firm's time and effort. I told you that you did not have to do everything I told you, but that you did have to come to terms with me, take action, make needed changes, and do whatever it took to achieve the targeted results. Although I have grown rather fond of most of you, I made it clear that, if there was no action, no change, no results, then – out of principle alone – heads needed to roll.
"A couple of stories.
"My younger sister played NCAA Division II soccer in college. As a junior and senior, she was her team's captain, so, her junior year, before the season began, a reporter asked for her prediction about the season, specifically, what kind of W-L record she thought her team would have, as a measure of success.
"My sister replied: "I don't plan to lose any games"."
"When my dad was younger, he sailed a lot of offshore races. According to him, it would get dangerous, sailing offshore at night, in rough seas. He says that they all used to remind each other, only half-jokingly, I think, that – where they were – if their boat went down, no one was going to blame them if they drowned.
"But – they knew they would still be dead, if they just sat there.
"Trust me, no one outside of RB Builders cares whether you succeed or not. No one else cares whether you separate yourselves from your competition. No one else cares whether you keep your jobs. Nobody else cares about your livelihood or your future. Nothing new in that revelation. Back in the "Age of Homebuilder Entitlement", nobody cared, either. It was just never an issue, because being good enough was good enough. Success is no longer such a foregone conclusion. No one cares, but no one is going to blame you.
"But – that does not change the outcome.
"I can just hear it now", said the intrepid, results-based consultant. "Poor things. What a great company RB Builders could have been. It was all just too much for them to handle, housing's version of The Apocalypse. But, it is not their fault.
"Nope. Nobody is going to blame you, if you go out of business. But, that is just what you will be – out of business.
"Failure is not an option. Not for me. Not for any of you."
Part II: "Your choice to continue your cynicism has a life expectancy of about 30 more seconds."
"I am the one who is saying it, but plenty of us are thinking it. This approach has merit, but it does not mean that it will work here, not the way this company has operated in the past", the superintendent said. "So, I want you to tell me how this is going to be different. I want you to tell me how this is going to work, now, in this company."
"Your concern – your issue – has nothing to do with production principles, or with production systems", said the intrepid, results-based consultant.
" . . . your issue has nothing to do with production principles. Profound, as always", said the CEO. "Clearly, it is more foundational than that. This is about giving teammates a reason to care, and about inspiring the confidence to follow where we are leading this company.
"So, one point at a time.
"Regarding your first point, the steps we have already taken to create business savvy-ness, to impart decision-making accountability and responsibility, and to provide a real financial stake in the business outcome are radical by industry standards. Collectively, they give all of us – and I mean all of us – reason to care deeply about improving the operating performance that drives that business outcome.
"Secondly, in terms of inspiring the confidence to follow, some of us are charged with an official responsibility of leadership, by virtue of our management positions in the company. Fair enough. I think that the leaders of an enterprise are there to serve, not be served. But, leadership is not fundamentally about the position that you hold, or do not hold. The way I choose to describe leadership, it is a matter of personal character and courage. It is about the credibility that flows from demonstrating integrity.
"It comes from trusting one another. It means sticking to agreements and keeping commitments. It means going beyond the expectations and responsibilities of your individual job. But, it also means speaking and hearing the truth. Expressing candor, like this", he said, nodding to the senior superintendent, "comes with the territory.
"It means pursuing goals that are worth pursuing, even if they are difficult to achieve. No. I will re-phrase that. It means pursuing goals that are worth pursuing, precisely because they are difficult to achieve.
"It comes from inspiring the type of optimism that sees every situation as we choose to make it, not as we are told it must be. Or, how some long-standing, so-called industry experts tell us it should be, if we were willing to settle for so-called industry best practices. Somehow, I just do not see industry best practice guidelines as the path to competitive separation. The assessment of current reality that underlies everything? That is where we are. The production principles we have instituted? Vetted, to get us to where we want to go. Team-based performance compensation? The focus on Gross Income? Same thing.
"This is the direction in which RB Builders is headed.
"For whatever reason in the past, such an understanding of leadership has been absent. At best, it has been an obligation and a title, for some, and an excuse for everyone else. It is a situation that predates me, but it is a situation that stops with me. Repairing the damage will not happen overnight. That is the thing with integrity and credibility. It is difficult to build and it is really easy to destroy. But – the situation is going to change, that I promise you.
"Based on past performance, I will not argue with your conclusion", said the CEO. "Nor will I blame you for being – as you put it – skeptical-bordering-on-cynical, about the prospect for change, the approach to production management we are committed to, or the requisite leadership I have just explained. The right amount of skepticism can be healthy; the possibility for pessimism is always there, but it has to be overcome, if anything worthwhile is to happen. But – I am going to make this clear, to all of you, to all of us – cynicism is pointless. Get over it.
"This is the direction in which RB Builders is headed, and your choice to continue your cynicism has a life expectancy of about 30 more seconds."
Part I: Push-Back
"May I say something?"
The question came from RB Builders' most experienced, capable, and respected superintendent, someone not known for his excess commentary. The conference room grew respectfully silent. And expectant.
"Sure", replied the CEO. "Speak your mind."
"Nice speech."
The superintendent continued.
"When I first heard about this arrangement", he said, "it made me want to throw up. What was it? Oh, I remember: Partnering and learning, participating in the financial outcome with a consulting firm on a series of projects with short timeframes and targeted, focused results, in pursuit of an overall company goal."
"This stuff is intriguing, even the idea of some type of team-based performance compensation. However – that is as far as I would ever let it go. In terms of expectations regarding the outcome, I have always been skeptical, bordering on cynical.
"I still am.
"This sounds just like every other program the company has embarked on in recent years. None of them have worked, either, not the way they were supposed to. Over-promised? Badly-executed? Focused on the wrong thing? Not for me to say, but I doubt that this program will be any different. Like the rest, it will just take up a lot of our time, sitting in meetings like this, that ultimately lead nowhere.
"What was it that was said? "Think globally, act locally"? I like the second half of that statement.
"My response to this stuff has been to put my head down and do my job. I have become good at doing that. As far as I have been concerned, this company consists of my job, nothing more. I have relationships, but that is not about my work. That is about friends and associates. I have argued in favor of individual performance compensation, not because I disliked team-based performance compensation, rather, because I knew I could achieve the performance that triggered the individual bonus, without having to depend on anyone or anything else.
"Give me a cycle time to achieve, and I will achieve it. Give me a quality standard to meet, and I will meet it. It does not matter what others do, it does not matter what RB Builders does. I get my job done, and I get myself paid. I am not willing to sacrifice what I know I can do personally, for what I do not believe we can do as a team.
"As for my job, I know what it takes to do it. You can have the rest of it. I do not need it. I could care less about production systems.
"I am the production system.
"My problem is not that I think this new stuff is the wrong approach. To the contrary, it makes compelling sense to me. It is the way we should be doing it. My problem is that this approach is bound to fight a losing battle against what I consider to be a pervasive attitude of complacency, entitlement, laziness, and resignation. All of you so-called leaders – those of you taking down the six-figure salaries and failing to produce results? Well – it leaves me a little cold.
"RB Builders is a pretty good company, actually one of the better homebuilding companies to work for. But – its management has historically lacked the willingness, capacity, and capability to change. Management says it has vision. It does not know what it sees. All we ever wind up doing is tying ourselves into knots, all the while declaring the latest change we need to make.
"In the end, my skepticism wins out. I am simply not going to be stupid enough to risk my own performance compensation on something in which I have no confidence."
The superintendent looked directly at the CEO. "In the past, it did not matter. But – like you – I do not think average performance defined by so-called industry best practices is going to cut it any longer.
"I commend you, and her", he said, pointing to the intrepid, results-based consultant, "for putting it out there. There is a lot that this new approach gets right. Regardless of what we choose to call it – an analogy, a concept, a visual reference, whatever – I do think our production system is a pipeline. I do think we need to understand the connection between the decisions we make every day and the business outcomes that protect our livelihood. I do think we should focus on optimizing the performance of the overall system, instead of the performance of its individual parts. I agree that there is a distinction between processes and projects, between process management and project management, and that we need to understand both.
"And – I hate to admit it – there is a part of me that wants to be part of something that is bigger and more important than me. We have talked about the need for a savvy, accountable, and motivated homebuilding team, comprised of savvy, accountable, and motivated teammates. I want to base my work on the "want-to" attitude that it takes to own and run a homebuilding business, not just the "how-to" mechanics of selling, starting, and building houses. I want to share accountability and responsibility for the decisions and the results. And – yes – I want to have a serious financial stake in the outcome. I want to be in the business of homebuilding, not just work in a homebuilding business.
"Wishful thinking about RB Builders does not erase the past. It does not dissuade my concern that this company lacks the willingness and capability to enact these changes.
"I am the one who is saying it, but plenty of us are thinking it. This approach has merit, but it does not mean that it will work here, not the way this company has operated in the past. So, I want you to tell me how this is going to be different. I want you to tell me how this is going to work, now, in this company."
The Road That Lies Ahead . . . and The Road Less Traveled.
Posted January 4, 2011 By Fletcher Groves
"Where is the homebuilding industry headed over the next five to ten years on the issues of growth, consolidation, and supply chain management?"
Actually, not a current set of questions. At the dawn of this century, Mike Hollister and I posed these and other questions in a volume of Reference Point, our then-periodic study of management practices in the homebuilding industry, conducted among the senior management of a select group of large building companies.
At the time, Mike and I were doing consulting work with Fortress Group, which is probably another story worth telling, someday.
Anyway, 11 years later, as we wait for the inevitable assertion of power – the imposition of will – that will finally herald the dawn of the Era of Consolidation, when the publicly-held homebuilding companies that survive the Great Homebuilding Recession get serious about consolidation, and take over the industry, I thought it might be worthwhile to look back and to summarize some of what builders told us then, and how we observed and commented on those findings:
GROWTH STRATEGIES:
" . . . almost three-fourths (71%) of these executives predict that their own building operations will become "much larger"; almost everyone else (27%) predicts that their operations will remain about the same size . . . overall, these findings are very consistent with the findings from [one of our previous studies]."
"We thought it would be interesting to see how all of this growth is going to materialize. When we asked these executives what primary strategy they will use to meet their growth projections, 41% identified "geographic expansion into new markets", and 39% selected "higher market share in current markets and buyer segments". The remaining 21% identified "new market share in additional buyer segments"; not a single [executive we surveyed] identified "vertical integration" – a decision to supply more of the component parts themselves – as a primary strategy."
CONSOLIDATION:
"At separate points in the study, we asked two questions designed to determine the extent to which industry consolidation – some combination of growth, merger, and acquisition – will reduce the number of active building companies in the years ahead."
"Our first question: Long term (10 years +), could they foresee the type of widespread consolidation that has already occurred in other industries? Overall, more than 70% of these executives said they [could] foresee the circumstances for such a consolidation."
"We then asked these senior managers whether they thought the number of homebuilding operations in their markets would increase or decrease in the next five to seven years. Overall, almost half (49%) think there will be fewer building companies, while more than one-third (38%) think the number of building companies will remain about the same; about one-in-ten (13%) believe the number of builders will actually increase."
"Their responses differ in significant respects from those expressed [in our previous studies] . . . at that time, less than one-in-ten (9%) thought there would be a significant decline in the number of builders . . . for those who thought there would be an increase . . . the situation has been reversed."
NOTE: Let's see. Seven-in-ten thought their own companies would be "much larger", but more than half thought the number of building companies in their markets would either increase or remain the same. Hmmm.
SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT:
"We finished by asking two questions related to distribution channels and supply chain management. We wanted to know whether builders view these two issues – closely related to change in many other industries – as something the homebuilding industry will need to address within the next ten years."
"Asked whether they could foresee . . . changes [that could include] the circumvention of established delivery systems similar to what has occurred in other industries . . . a slight majority (54%) believes the industry will have to deal with this issue in the next ten years; the rest do not see this as an important issue."
"On the matter of supply chain management, [there was] much stronger agreement. Asked whether they could foresee homebuilding companies taking the lead in collaborating . . . to manage all of the activities in the process of creating the housing product . . . an overwhelming majority (80%) expect the industry to move in that direction."
We then offered the following comments and observations:
"Even if builders choose to reject the notion of widespread consolidation and outright circumvention of established delivery systems, and dismiss the level of growth projected by such a high percentage of builders as collective boardroom fantasy, the dependence of so many builders on growth strategies aimed at geographic expansion and higher market share in current buyer segments ought to raise a couple of red flags:
"[First], assuming that a strategy based on expansion into new geographic markets represents real growth, and not just the transfer of demand through acquisition or merger, then it will have the effect of forcing more competition on the existing level of demand. The first victims will be the builders that cannot compete for the available lots. But, then what? How will the builders that survive assert themselves in the market? Price? Product Quality? Customization?"
"[Second], a strategy based on capturing a higher share of the market in current buyer segments asks a more naked version of the same question – how do builders acquire more business – in the same buyer segment, in the same geographic market? Can those types of gains be sustained?"
"Growth fueled by a strategy of geographic expansion and higher market share in current buyer segments is essentially a strip-mining operation – an attempt to create value out of something a mile wide and an inch deep. But what choice do builders have? As an industry, we have outsourced almost every value-added activity in the building process."
"Moreover, we can talk all day long about the need to increase productivity, but, first, that is a difficult proposition when someone else is doing all the work, and, second, there is no real point in improving productivity unless a productive use can be found for the additional capacity. And, besides, just where will all that additional production capacity be invested? In more expansion? In higher market share?"
"When we look at it in these terms, there has to be a better way."
So, today, I suppose that Antoine Dodson would put it this way: "Well, obviously, we have large, publicly-held homebuilding companies in your area. They're climbing in your communities, they're snatching your business up. So, hide the lots, hide the buyers, hide the banks. And, hide your employees, too, because they're buyin' everybody up around here."
Well, obviously . . . a degree of consolidation has occurred in the homebuilding industry, and that merger and acquisition activity had occurred, has occurred, before and after this edition of Reference Point, 11 years ago. But, consolidation on a massive scale is still not a bet that I would necessarily take.
There is evidence against the inevitability of that outcome, despite the fact that it resonates in almost every other industry vertical. There are plenty of reasons why large-scale, industry-revolutionizing consolidation in homebuilding has not happened, and those reasons remain the obstacles and challenges that would prevent it from ever happening. And, those obstacles and challenges – some which are self-imposed – remain the subject for more discussion.
Not saying that it cannot happen. Just questioning whether it ever will.


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Plano del Puerto de Veracruz en la Costa...
Direccion Hidrografica de Madrid
Plano del Puerto de Veracruz en la Costa Ocidental del Seno Mexicano. Por Dn. Bernardo De Orta, Capitan de Navio Graduado de la Rl. Armada y de dicho Puerto. Año de 1798.
Madrid / 1798
22.5 x 17 inches
Rare separately issued chart of the harbor at Vera Cruz, as surveyed by Bernardo Orta in 1798.
The chart was of such importance that it was later re-issued on a smaller scale by Alexander von Humboldt.
Orta's chart shows the coast of Mexico and the city of Veracruz, numerous offshore islands, desired routes of approach, and various soundings. A lengthy note in the upper left corner provides tips for entering the harbor.
The chart was prepared under the direction of Bernardo Orta, captain of the Spanish Royal Armada stationed in Veracruz.
Minor foxing.
Direccion Hidrografica de Madrid Biography
The Dirección de Hidrografía, or the Directorate of Hydrographic Works, was established in 1797. Its roots were in the Casa de Contratación, founded in 1503 in Sevilla, which housed all the charts of the Spanish Empire and oversaw the creation and maintenance of the padrón real, the official master chart. The Casa, now in Cadiz, was shuttered in 1790, but Spain still needed a hydrographic body. In response, the Dirección was created in 1797. One of its first projects was the publication of charts from the Malaspina Expedition (1789-1794). The Dirección oversaw not only publication, but also surveying. The Dirección was abolished in the early twentieth century, when their work was distributed to other organizations.
Antique Maps / North America / Mexico
[Sketch of Río Chacalapa and surrounding hills]
Cartographic Sketch of Mountainous Region and the Chacalapa River
Carta Corografica del Estado de Oaxaca y de su Obispado. Formada por C. Manuel Ortega, Profesor de medicina y cirujia, Catedratico de anotomia en el Insituto de sciencias del mismo Estado y socio corresponsal de la Sociedad de geografia y estadistica de la Nacion
Early Modern Map of the State of Oaxaca
Yucatan Conventus Iuridici Hispaniae Novae Pars Occidenalis, et Guatimala Conventus Iuridicus
Rare example of Covens & Mortier's map of the Yucatan Peninsula.
Plano Topográfico de la Ciudad de México Fromado por el Ingeniero Jose Colmenero, con las nuevas calles abierta hasta la fecha. 1872
Rare separately issued map of Mexico City, lithographed by V. de Murguia e hijos in Mexico City.
Plano del Templo Mayor de Cempoala
Striking Plan of the Templo Mayor de Cempoala (Zempoala) in the state of Veracruz