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Politics Warfare
Why the Attack on Syria?
46 Comments on Why the Attack on Syria?
I won't mince words: Trump's decision to launch missiles into Syria is a disaster. In reactions across the internet I am seeing justifications but in no way do the advantages come close to outweighing the costs.
I will address a few:
Trump wanted to intimidate China and North Korea
I doubt the Chinese president is easily frightened and making Kim Jong Un too nervous or desperate could turn Seoul and then the whole Korean peninsula into a smoking crater.
Russians and Syrians had time to evacuate/runways weren't destroyed etc.
It's still an act of war on another nation's territory. You don't get brownie points or gold star stickers for playing nice at war. These measures prevented immediate escalation to actual war but has worsened relations that were already pretty bad for no real reason. If the goal was to get rid of ISIS why is the US attacking the people who were successully getting rid of ISIS?
That'll Shut Up the Media About Russian Conspiracy Theories!
This didn't stop Trump in the election when he was far more vulnerable, it certainly wasn't going to stop his presidency. Wiretapping ploys and Rice unmaskings were already effectively countering the fake hysteria. Nothing about this relatively small problem required a risky foreign policy move.
Trump showed those pansies he's not another wimpy Obama!
Trump got elected in part because his opponent was openly agitating for war with Russia and Syria that no one wants. Obama and Hillary's disastrous Syria policy helped ISIS form in the first place! Now we're back to square one after spending nearly two years on the election?
The Syrians were gassing their own peoplez! Look at the cute dead kidz!
We all know this was just an excuse. It's irrelevant whether it's fabricated or not. Trump's whole America First campaign was a reaction to this kind of moralistic world policing.
The most rational possible reason I can think of for this idiocy is Trump has to make some concessions to the neocons or they would have just let the democrats filibuster Gorsuch indefinitely.
Trump's administration desperately depends on getting new justices into the supreme court. For millions of American voters who did not like Trump, that's the one issue that pushed them over the edge. Furthermore, he desperately needs to break the impasse that is preventing him from acting decisively on immigration, the single biggest issue that put him in power.
I recognize it's a tough situation, a sacrifice of some kind may have been necessary to grease the wheels, but I do not think this sacrifice was worth it.
The optics of attacking Syria right as Hillary came out and asked for it, with all the neocons celebrating afterwards is terrible.
It has just been openly demonstrated that no matter who you vote for, you still get pointless bombs and wars in the Middle East while the same old elites pat each other on the back.
Over $100 million dollars worth of cruise missiles just got dumped on a distant land most Americans could care less about for no real gain.
These conspicuous displays of waste while dams are crumbling and highways are burning down at home starts to sound a lot like just another chorus of "let them eat cake."
So now Gorsuch is in, a key victory for Trump. But the meta is even more important.
Now that Americans have seen appointed federal judges can block anything they don't like…
Now that they've seen you get war and bombs in the Middle East no matter who you vote for…
The whole democracy really starts to look like a thinly veiled fiction. And if that last veil gets stripped away, judges are just silly ugly old people in robes playing make-believe and all you have left is force.
From the start of his campaign, Trump shrewdly sought to curry favor with the military. He understood if he was going to go against the entire political establishment, he would need solid backing to stay in power against contrived coups.
Unfortunately, we might be discovering a hard truth that neo-con politicians are just the political arm of the military top brass.
Generals tend to be establishment to the core and incestuously in bed with military industrial contractors. So perhaps we've found the limits of what voting can accomplish.
Some grudging concessions on immigration and jobs perhaps, but the flow of trillions to contractors who pretend to design fighter planes and wars in the interests of the US' biggest arms customers must continue.
The problem is the country is being bled dry and the farce is becoming obvious to millions. Generals can't really seize power directly until their troops are willing to fire on fellow citizens and if they tried that, they'd find their authority doesn't go as far outside the beltway as they think.
So Trump still has considerable bargaining power even though he's under a lot of pressure—if he wants to use it. In retrospect perhaps we can now see the coils tightening. Flynn replaced with someone more in line with the innermost circles and now possibly Bannon getting edged out of favor?
At this time all we can do is wait and see what happens next.
Tags attack, china, cruise missiles, putin, russia, syria, trump, why
The Trump Era And Iran
8 Comments on The Trump Era And Iran
Iran hasn't been a major expansionist power since the 17th century. The modern state of Iran is a pale shadow compared to any of the empires across milennia based in the Persian homeland.
There frankly isn't much reason for the United States to make Iran a top foreign policy priority. They may eventually get nukes but Pakistan, a state infinitely worse than Iran already has nukes and the world hasn't ended yet.
Aside from influence over Middle East client states, the US and Iran have no real conflicts of interest. Rivalry with Iran was largely manufactured by US meddling in Iranian affairs. For some bizarre reason the US establishment just can't get over the fact that their Shah didn't work out 40 years ago and that they need to move on. It's not unlike their inability to adjust to the fact that the USSR no longer exists.
President Trump, as of this writing, has just fired his national security advisor, Michael Flynn. There are many flimsy-sounding official reasons for the dismissal but I suspect it is not without coincidence it comes shortly after Flynn put Iran "on notice" after the test launch of a missile.
Iran responded by launching more missiles and the US was again left looking foolish and impotent.
It looks like Trump took Flynn's advice regarding Iran, but perhaps had his reservations because he made Flynn publicly own the announcement rather than doing it himself and taking the credit.
When Flynn's sabre-rattling backfired, Trump may have decided to pull the plug even though he must understand that the optics are damaging to his administration.
He acted similarly many times firing staff during his campaign with everyone saying he was finished and his organization falling apart. These kinds of plays shouldn't surprise us by now.
The open belligerence expressed by Flynn, when backed by no credible threat, makes no sense and makes the situation worse. We need only reflect on how W Bush's 'Axis of Evil' needlessly inflamed and encouraged his designated enemies.
Why on earth would anyone want to keep their enemies "on notice?" Why not keep them guessing about their relationship with the US and always leave room for negotiation? I remember how neocons and cuckservatives revolted when Obama merely said he would be willing to "talk to Iran." What kind of national leaders could express outrage at conducting diplomacy, a basic function of state? This is the sort of childish idiocy an adult like Trump has to tear out by the roots.
Iran is a state with paranoid tendencies as one would expect of a land that has been under the influence of foreign powers for the last 200 years and invaded from every direction by every group for thousands of years. Their nation lies at a natural geo-political crossroads so their government naturally has a hardliner temperament somewhat similar to that of Russia. The key distinction that the US misunderstands is their outlook is primarily defensive in nature.
Beyond a buffer client zone in the Shia regions of Iraq along with its Shia holy cities, Iran really doesn't seem to aspire to that much at the moment. They have proxies all over the Middle East, but more to destabilize Sunni powers they fear than anything else.
I actually think Obama had the right general policy direction even if he was forced to by circumstance. When his pet Syrian revolutionaries blew up into ISIS he went crawling on his knees to Tehran begging for them keep an independent Iraq in existence on paper at least. The price was that he had to make humiliating concessions.
I think he still could have done a better job of playing the situation, though, considering he was paying the Iranians to do what they desperately wanted to do anyway. I have to give him credit though for at least opening a dialogue when no one else in the establishment would.
The Western powers can't seem to wrap their heads around the fact that Iran as the central power of Shi'ite Islam with its own great share of the petroleum market is the natural enemy of Sunni powers. The potential for playing them off against each other should be obvious.
The US had its chance to take the Sunni side of that divide when they backed Saddam Hussein as a relatively secular Arab Nationalist leader of Iraq. Had diplomacy been conducted with a more realpolitik understanding back then, perhaps Iraq would have been allowed to absorb Kuwait as an ally's reward after their hard-fought war with Iran.
Perhaps that extra infusion of oil money would have enabled America's then-ally to go back and pose a greater threat.
But that's alternate history and now it actually makes more sense to play Iran against the Sunni Middle East and thereby have some leverage over them from behind the scenes. At the very least, it makes sense to defuse decades of pointless hostility with Iran.
If the US had wanted to pursue that route, it already could have with a strong ally before it invaded that ally twice, deposed its ruler, and left behind a yawning power vacuum that has caused endless headaches ever since.
At present, Iran aligns with Russia to the frustration of the establishment, but this connection need not exist. Historically, Russian and Persian powers have been bitter enemies that have fought many wars. Their co-operation is far from inevitable. Theirs is an alliance made necessary by American intransigence. As the US drove the Iranians into the arms of the Soviet Union, it now pushes them towards Russia. If it were to become a foreign policy goal to divide them, it ought not to be that difficult. Just encourage both to have more ambitions in the Caucasus.
For the time being, Iranian-Russian cooperation has been beneficial in keeping the Middle East from descending into complete chaos while for once the US can watch from afar as someone else puts in all the blood and sweat.
US establishment rhetoric toward Iran has frustrated me for years. Their stupid heavy-handedness in all things has destroyed their credibility until even a non-politician TV billionaire can step in and push them aside. Some inflammatory statements about Crimea aside, I am hoping Trump has the sense not to get drawn into the cult of unilateral, irrational belligerence.
Update 2/17/17: Was the Flynn firing also a ploy to draw out and expose enemies within the state and intelligence agencies? Very intrigued to see what happens next. Like in the election, Trump keeps people guessing, as he should.
Tags Iran, michael flynn, on notice, persia, russia, safavid, Soviet Union, trump, ussr
International Affairs Politics
Trump Foreign Policy: Post-Unilateralism
6 Comments on Trump Foreign Policy: Post-Unilateralism
Coalition, or no, whether other nations were willing or not, the brand of America has been built on unilateral foreign policy. The world's only superpower was also the world's policeman.
Power, however, is a tool and as with money even great amounts of it are easily squandered without clear objectives and a sensible strategy.
The collapse of the Soviet Union was seen as the ultimate legitimation of unilateral diplomacy, an eternal blank check for Wilsonian exceptional interventionism at the "end of history."
Every president since Reagan doubled down on this nonsense until it reached a climax of absurdity under George W. Bush. Obama finally toned it down a little bit, because he had to. Meddling went on unabated, but with most of America's once abundant international political capital finally frittered away there was only so much he could do. By the end of his presidency he was a laughingstock openly mocked by the Chinese leadership, insulted by the leader of the Philippines, and regarded with thinly veiled contempt by Russia.
Trump leads a reaction to a political establishment that has been utterly discredited by its decades of relentless ineptitude and failure despite holding every possible strategic advantage.
It has been clear since Trump's campaign he envisions a US that conducts foreign policy as a nation among nations, not as a bombastic world police that clumsily throws its weight around.
This will mean, thank goodness, far less meddling in the affairs of other nations and a restoration of balances of power. By wielding power with a lighter hand, it will become possible to accomplish far more.
The US can begin to create a post-exceptionalist, post-unilateral world by simply withdrawing US military interference.
Having US bases while limiting the military power of the host countries has increased the burden on the US while merely infuriating neighboring powers needlessly.
If the US removes most of its troops and involvement in NATO it forces EU nations to spend far more of their wealth on defense. If Europe insured itself against Russian aggression, Russia would possibly be more amenable to talking about its interests elsewhere…
With a stable balance of power between the EU bloc and Russia, the US could have more constructive conversations with Russia regarding its extremely long border with China. China is the only world power with potential, besides a real United States of Europe, to be in the same league as the USA.
America and China are presently economic partners joined at the hip, but we must think towards the long game. Even as the US-Chinese relationship exists now, why not encourage other powers to contain them, giving the US more bargaining leverage?
In light of this, the complete obsession of the USA's establishment with the Middle East and anti-Russian sentiment is perplexing. A major foreign policy coup of the 21st century will be to split Russia from China as Nixon once split China away from the Soviet Union.
America could also withdraw from Japan forming a new, more equal relationship and encouraging Japanese re-armament and cooperation with Taiwan to counterbalance Chinese naval ambitions.
Hopefully, a post-exceptional international order would see the US and Europe able to freely operate with the emerging great power of China hampered by its nervous neighbors. Why meddle when we need only encourage them to do what serves themselves? The Daoist maxim to "do without doing" will be very appropriate in coming years.
Regarding Korea, it is ironic that if the US renounced its military commitments in the South, it's possible the Chinese would become suddenly more amenable to discussing phasing out a client state of North Korea they have no special love for, but have kept around as a buffer against a clumsily over-aggressive US. Add some diplomatic pressure from neighboring powers, and perhaps an understanding could be arrived at where none is possible now…
Much of the benefits of a post-unilateral foreign policy come from simply undoing the heavy-handed status quo that counter-productively plays at imperialism. From now on we may see the US doing more with less or in other words, "under budget and ahead of schedule."
Tags china, exceptionalism, foreign policy, north korea, russia, trump, wilsonian
economics International Affairs Politics
Brookings Institute Talk on Russia and America
2 Comments on Brookings Institute Talk on Russia and America
I attended a talk today at the Brookings Institution about the future of Russian-American relations.
Naturally there was considerable focus on current issues such as Syria and Snowden being given asylum, and how it might affect the upcoming G20 summit.
I didn't wonder about it much, really. There's nothing in Syria that's central to Russian interests and Snowden, while a nasty diplomatic slap in the face, does nothing to change the larger situation.
I was more interested in bigger political and economic developments and where they might be headed.
Interestingly, the experts pretty much all agreed that the present political order in Russia is dependent on Putin's cult of personality – that without his influence there would be nothing to hold Russia's oligarchs together.
And – there is no plan for succession should something happen to Putin tomorrow…
They addressed how Putin's main objective with his anti-American gestures is to boost his popularity at home. His anti-American posturing has a huge appeal to his base – Russia's working classes.
The urban middle and upper middle class has little loyalty to Putin, often protesting him in Moscow and St. Petersburg, so it's only natural Russia's ruler tailors his image to the vast majority he relies on.
While Syria is, relatively speaking, a sideshow, the fate of former Soviet republics is not. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, among Russia's first concerns is to bring countries like Ukraine closer to Moscow and prevent them from aligning with Western Europe.
If we look at the numbers, though, it seems to me Russia's agenda is doomed to fail.
Russia's entire economy is worth 1.8 trillion. This is enough to make it one of the world's bigger economies, but to put Russia's imperial goals in perspective, Italy's economy is considerably bigger at 2.2 trillion with 1/3rd the population.
Let's pretend we are Ukraine for a moment:
Which would we align with: A 1.8 trillion Russia or a 17 trillion European Union?!
Not to mention, Russia's economy to this day is based heavily on commodities like natural gas rather than skills or tech.
Indeed, one subject to arise during the question and answer session with the experts was brain drain from Russia…
With no Soviet Union any more that can keep their best talent captive, skilled Russians are increasingly ditching their home country for places like Silicon Valley. And Russia itself with its feudal oligarchs and powerful crime lords tends to be very unfriendly to commerce.
So long as Russian small businessmen are parasitized by protection rackets and foreign investors are confronted with corruption, their economy is not likely to become truly "modern" any time soon.
A main theme of the talk was to ask what Putin really wants and how to get Russia to work more closely with US objectives. Even the experts seemed to regard Putin as a mystic, inscrutable, Eastern Czar.
If we look at the numbers, though, it seems clear why the US can't seem to get Russia to budge.
Relatively speaking, the US really is not that important to Russian interests so it simply doesn't have that much leverage.
The vast majority of Russia's foreign trade is with the European Union and with China in a distant second place. Commerce with the US takes a comparatively puny 4th or 5th place with just a few percent of the total. Also, the US is just about on the other side of the planet from Russia's major cities while China and Europe are much more immediate neighbors.
It really shouldn't come as a surprise that US requests take a back seat compared to more immediate concerns. What decisive advantage does America offer in exchange for Putin's cooperation? Putin is a pragmatist, so clearly what he's being offered isn't worth as much as he gets from slighting the US to boost his domestic approval ratings.
The economic reality on the ground is that Russia is already just a big commodity provider for the EU, and thus in every meaningful sense, already part of Europe.
If we look at the facts, Russia as a modern great power, is pure fantasy.
During the talk, there was mention of a new, more Western generation of Russians just waiting for the older oligarchs to die off. Such a generation is bound to reconcile Russia's political reality with the economic reality.
Instead of trying to keep states like Ukraine from being sucked into Europe, Russia will itself be sucked into the Euro zone.
Even if Russia somehow remains an aloof oligarchic kleptocracy, it will still be useful for its resources as a lesser partner of Europe.
Tags american, economy, EU, euro, oligarchs, putin, relations, russia, snowden, syria, trade, us, zone
Business economics history International Affairs
The Rest Are Not Rising After All
1 Comment on The Rest Are Not Rising After All
Brazil, Russia, India, China. The so-called BRICs.
"Over 50 percent of them(Americans), according to a Gallup poll conducted this year, said they think that China is already the world's "leading" economy, even though the U.S. economy is still more than twice as large…
The notion of wide-ranging convergence between the developing and the developed worlds is a myth…
Of the roughly 180 countries in the world tracked by the International Monetary Fund, only 35 are developed. The markets of the rest are emerging – and most of them have been emerging for many decades and will continue to do so for many more…
There were a few pockets of countries that did catch up with the West, but they were limited to oil states in the Gulf, the nations of southern Europe after World War II, and the economic "tigers" of East Asia…
It was only after 2000 that the emerging markets as a whole started to catch up; nevertheless as of 2011, the difference in per capita incomes between the rich and developing nations was back to where it was in the 1950s…
Other than being the largest economies in their respective regions, the big four emerging markets never had much in common. They generate growth in different and often competing ways – Brazil and Russia for example are major energy producers that benefit from high energy prices , whereas India, as a major energy consumer, suffers from them. Except in highly unusual circumstances…they are unlikely to grow in unison…
Russia's economy and stock market have been…dominated by an oil-rich class of billionaires whose assets equal 20 percent of GDP, by far the largest share held by the super-rich in any major economy…
…looks back to say the seventeenth century, when China and India accounted for perhaps half of global GDP…
China's population is simply too big and aging too quickly for its economy to continue growing as rapidly as it has. With over 50 percent of its people now living in cities, China is nearing what economists call "'the Lewis turning point'" the point at which a country's surplus labor from rural areas has been largely exhausted…
One casualty will be the notion that China's success demonstrates the superiority of authoritarian, state-run capitalism…
Although the world can expect more breakout nations to emerge from the bottom income tier, at the top and the middle, the new global economic order will probably look more like the old one than most observers predict. The rest may continue to rise ,but they will rise more slowly and unevenly than many experts are anticipating. And precious few will ever reach the income levels of the developed world."
Foreign Affairs, November/December 2012 Broken BRICs: Why the Rest Stopped Rising, Ruchir Sharma
Tags 3rd world, brazil, BRIC, china, developing, emerging, India, rest, rise, ruchir, russia, sharma
history Warfare
Did the USSR Defeat Germany Because of or In Spite of Stalin?
No Comments on Did the USSR Defeat Germany Because of or In Spite of Stalin?
Stalin's purges of officers in the Soviet military destroyed its experienced leadership, a failing which became all too clear in the war with Finland. Worse Stalin ignored numerous warnings that Germany was about to attack. To cap it off, Stalin had a mental breakdown when the Nazi attack finally came, leaving the nation without sure leadership for days at the most critical time.
Could the Soviet Union have pulled together the single minded ability and organization to fight back without an autocrat like Stalin in power?
Tags barbarossa, hitler, nazi germany, russia, stalin, ussr, world war 2, ww2, Wwii
history Politics
"The Tartar Yoke" Was The Best Thing That Ever Happened to Moscow
No Comments on "The Tartar Yoke" Was The Best Thing That Ever Happened to Moscow
Long story short:
In the 1300s, Moscow, a mediocre(The Kremlin was a wooden fort) city state rose to power because they served as lackeys of the Golden Horde.
A clever Muscovite prince hung out in the Horde's capital in Sarai, actively currying the Khan's favor and snapping up all the best opportunities as they came. Quite simply, he was the best at sucking up to the boss.
Moscow's big break was finally getting appointed as the Khan's personal tax collector and enforcer over all the other Russian states. Everything Ivan "Moneybags" I did from then on was backed by the threat of the Khan's armies. Game. Set. Match.
Moscow wasn't exactly the center of things early on. Just one of many towns in one of many fractious principalities all of them tributaries to the Golden Khan in Sarai.
Tags golden horde, ivan, kremlin, medieval, moneybags, moscow, muscovite, principalities, russia, sarai, tartar, tatar, yoke


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Please see the following information regarding the FIMS 14.60 installation and patch.
Error No Results Returned from Tax Status Organization Verify. Web Service could not be Accessed. Check Internet Connection.
1. We created a patch for those customers who have already upgraded to 14.60 and have the issues. See the Blackbaud.com downloads page for the patch for those customers already on 14.60 and are experiencing one of the issues above. Note, this is only for self-hosted customers that have already upgraded to 14.60 and have one of the issues above. In hosting, this patch will be rolled out to all hosted customers the weekend of 4/14/2018-4/15/2018.
1. From any workstation, save patch file, p1460t60.zip, to a location on the workstation.
2. Go to FIMS | Tools | System Utilities | FIMS Update and Patch Install Utility.
3. Browse and select the saved patch file from step 1.
2. We updated the 14.60 installer on the downloads page so that future customers who download from that page will get the installer that includes the fixes on 4/10/2018. If you have not upgraded to 14.60 yet, please download the newest 14.60 installer that is now on the Blackbaud.com downloads page.


Shaolin Zhaoyang Fist (Shaolin Zhaoyang Quan) was created by the monk Zhan Quan of Qing Dynasty (AD 1644-1911) based on the foundation of Rising Sun Fist (Zhaoyang Quan) integrated with combat techniques. The arrangement was finalized after thorough refinements and sublimations. It features with simple footwork, swift attack, rely heavily on leg techniques to overcome the opponent, to attack by jump in from far away, to counter attack by dodge and suffer. This routine stresses on techniques such as leap, writhe, roll, arrow, empty bullet and fly kick to attack the opponent's key parts of his lower body. Although upper body of arms, elbows, fists and head bump are also used, these are merely for defense purpose while seeking chances to attack. That is to say that you use your upper parts to lure your opponent to concentrate on his upper body while attack him from below. Your attack will then be unpredictable and able to overmaster or disable your opponent. This is considered to be one of Shaolin's unique skill.


Here are the reviews contained in the book. White Australian supremacists, who seem to be thick on the ground, will not like what they say. What explains the derogatory views expressed publicly by white Aussies? A sense of collective guilt? No! One cannot feel guilty on behalf of one's forebears. 'Why can't they be like us?' is a better explanation.
Since the Irish Catholics were allowed to be a separate people, with their own systems of education and charity, should not the Australian Aborigines (who was here first) be a separate people within an integrated ethno-culturally diverse population?
Would that mean recognising them as First Nation People? Yes, but over the dead bodies of many a whitey. What about giving them a right to have a say in how they are now to be uplifted societally and integrated? Since terra nullius was proven false, could white-man superiority not be up to a requisite standard to 'bridging the gap' (a favourite mantra of politicians who prefer words to effective action)?
• "in 156 pages, Pascoe has inverted almost everything I thought I knew about pre-colonial Australia. Importantly, he's not relying on oral history, which runs the risk of being too easily bunked; his sources are the journals of notable explorers and surveyors, of pastoralists and protectors. He quotes them verbatim, describing all the signs of a complex civilisation but viewed through the blinkered lens of appropriation and White superiority. As a teacher – I recommended it as essential reading for any educator." Lisa Hill, blogger and educator.
• "This very readable, strongly argued study turns the accepted nation of the Aborigines as a hunter-gatherer people completely on its head" Steven Carroll, Sydney Morning Herald.
• "He has done a great service by bringing this material to students and general readers, and in such a lively and engaging fashion." Richard Broome, Agora Magazine.
• "This is an important book that advances a powerful argument for re-evaluating the sophistication of Aboriginal peoples' economic and socio-political livelihoods, and calls for Australia to embrace the complexity, sophistication and innovative skills of Indigenous people into its concept of itself as a nation … an important and well-argued book." Dr. Michael Davis, Honorary Research Fellow at Sydney University.
• "A remarkable book." Max Allen, The Australian.
The literary quality of Pascoe's book about the settled lives of his ancestral people is demonstrated by being short-listed for the Queensland Literary Award and the Victorian Premier's Literary Award, both in 2014; the 2016 NSW Premier's Literary Award as 'Book of the Year', and the 2016 NSW Premier's Literary Award as winner.
(Comment: The Bradshaw cave paintings show that the Chinese had visited the Kimberleys.


Share Your Pictures of the Results You Get from Our Take on the Kennon-Green Version of Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll Recipe!
Update: Many of you have been gracious enough to share pictures of your finished cinnamon rolls after following our version of the Cinnabon cinnamon roll recipe. If you want your picture added to the gallery to inspire others, leave it in the comments section.


Australia granted him Citizenship in recognition for his contribution to the music industry when his song 'Like the river', recorded Live at Sydney Opera House went to number one on the Aria pop charts.
for over 15 years before venturing on to developing his career as a singer songwriter.
His first solo album which featured the legendary Artist Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan sold over 6 million copies. He became the first ever Pakistani born artist to crack US world music radio stations.
In 2007 he came to Australia to study at Sydney Film School and ended up recording a Live album at the Sydney Opera House.
GO ON- New video single out now.
Shot in the beautiful great Australian Outback this clip celebrates the spirit of survival and the joy in never giving up.
Like the River Live at Sydney Opera House.
This video represents a significant milestone in Mahmood Khan's incredible musical journey.
He became the first Artist from the Indian Sub continent to record a Live album in the concert hall at the Sydney Opera House.
This song went on to create music history in Australian when Mahmood became the first Asian artist to score a number one on the Aria Pop charts.
A behind the scenes documentary 'Journey of a new sound' is available on Youtube.
Like the River live from Studios 301, Sydney.
Another incredible Live performance with his Australian band.
Mahmood Khan performs Live on Australian mainstream Television.
In 2004 Mahmood launched this Eastern band which took many years to develop.
This rare recording was shot in 2005.
More of God- Recorded Live at Sydney Opera House.
A spiritual mix of Gypsy and world music with pop sensibilities based around a solid Funk foundation.
Make sure to watch til the end!
This video was shot in 2009 at Sydney Film School.
Copyright © 2018 Beart Viral music- All Rights Reserved.


Keeping your life on track to meet certain goals can be hard. If you have kids, are in a relationship, have a demanding work schedule, elderly family member whom you have to take care of, or just about anything else, it can be hard and give you the excuse not to pursue your goals and be productive. As a writer, I know that I sometimes need help with things like attempting to be creative (I get writers block), sticking to a writing schedule, finding articles of interest for myself and being self disciplined. Here are some web and app resources that I use to help me daily to improve productivity.
is the best list app and web resource that I know and use. I can share certain lists with group of people like my family and another list with, let's say, my boss. The best part is neither of them see any other list I am sharing.
A great feature of Wunderlist is the reminder and due date. If it is on your phone or tablet, it will send you reminders (push notifications or emails) as well as have the due date next to the item. It frees up your mind so you are not worrying about what has been completed or not and lets you move on to more important things you want to do.
Wunderlist is cross platform and synced not only for your devices, but also the others you share lists with. I seriously suggest and highly recommend using this tool.
There are some pay features – including adding a background, unlimited assigning, unlimited files and unlimited sub-tasks. But I have not had any issues with the free version for the amount that I use it on a personal level.
My second favorite all time web resource and app is Trello. A simple to use layout helps set clear goals and you can create lists to achieve these goals. Trello is like Evernote and Google Keep (mentioned below) but something about this one just really makes me feel organized and lets me do things in a way I understand for myself.
So basically you create a "board" and then add a list. Inside this list are "cards." Each card can be very different from the one before, but is still essential to completing the list. You write the description of the list on top. One list I have is "Work on Financial Goals." Inside that I create a card "Payoff things" then inside that card I have 3 items to check off. 1. Payoff Amex, 2. Payoff Car 3. Cut Student Loan in half to $XXXX. As I complete a list item, Trello tells me what percentage I am to completing this particular goal. My next list is "Things to Try." Inside that card I have "Join a Dodgeball Team" – I listed some links to local places that are advertising a Dodgeball league.
There are some pay features, but I do not need use them and you can try them out by recommending to a friend.
As an example of how it works, I assist a guy who installs alarms and he'll call me up and tell me that he just left ABC store in blank town. I then go in and start writing up the job ticket, estimate, and other documents that are going to be needed. I also place notes that he rambled off to me and share that Evernote note with him.
Google Keep is Google's Answer to Evernote. I recently just started playing with this to see how I like it and as a Google Fan (Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Drive) I am liking it so far. The design is like a board with sticky notes. I think of this as my answer to not having to carry a pen and small pad on me anymore to jot down numbers, notes, or a take a quick pic of something that I want to think of later.
I do not like that everything is where ever it lands and there is no real organization except to move the notes that I have found, but when you are on the go just wanting to take the quick note, it does it's job.
Everyone I know uses Pinterest in one way or another. However, most people I know don't use it to boost their productivity or creativity. I even have boards that are just random ramblings like Puppy Love – it's about puppies. I have boards that are secret. These boards are titled with project names I am working on and contain images and notes for how I want to use them for said project.
Also, this year I started posting more meaningful items, creating a board called Making You a Better Tomorrow. I have many different items on this board, but they are all related to making me a better tomorrow; some are just random quotes, articles I find interesting and want to share with people who follow. Be it inspiration that I found for myself personally or for a project, Pinterest keeps everything pretty organized in one place.
Make sure to have Pinterest on your phone, tablet, and the add on widgets for your computer and browser. It makes it a lot simpler to Pin.
Stupid and crazy as it is, I love this app. For 1 second everyday I take a moment to shoot beautiful video – be it of my dog, a city street I am walking on, a dinner with friends, whatever the case may be. I learned that when you take in your surroundings, even if it is just for a second, you can clear your mind of the clutter and learn to prioritize things into 3 categories Must Do, Want to do and Don't even worry about.
One Word is very simple, but gets my productive brain juices flowing. One of my first morning activities is to go on this site and write a blurb about the word they give me – you only have 60 seconds.
There are many great reasons to love Diaro app. Yes, I use it as a Diary/Journal of sorts, but it is so much more. First off, it is private! Second, the app sends me a reminder everyday to write.
I write about many different things, but the categories feature I can use help me to go above and beyond and collectively organize my thoughts where they need to be about a particular topic.
Negatives: paying the $3.99 to Sync, but it is worth it if you are going to keep up with your journal and writings. You cannot customize the website version to look like the one on your phone or tablet. Support for Diaro says they are going to be adding this feature shortly.
Google Hangouts is one of my favorite apps. This is a universal answer to Apples Facetime with added features. You have video chat, texting/chatting, sharing of docs and pictures. Most people I know have a Google account, so I am seeing more and more people using Google hangouts with me in one fashion or another.
I like using the Simplemind app when I know I am going to have to give a presentation, start a big project, or start a story that I want to tell. Apps like these let you see everything – like a big brain storming session and then help to organize it from there.
Basically Google Fit is a glorified pedometer, and considering I always have my phone on me it is nice to know how much I walked even on the days I do not go to the gym. It helps me to prioritize and organize my exercise routine.
I like Budgetsimple but wish the app was free. It is simple and easy to use, but just a little time consuming if you are only using the web version like I am. If the app were free, then I could be sitting in my car while the guy is pumping my gas and enter everything right then and there. But I have yet to find a good app and website that is a cross platform finance app that I like. It is very helpful with creating details and showing you charts of how your life really is working out on a monthly basis.
If you know a good cross platform finance app that is user friendly and easy to use, please let me know so I can play with it.
Pocket is one of the apps that I like to use when I am traveling. But if I am not traveling for awhile, I sort of forget about this app. The best thing about this app is the ability to read certain articles offline. It is perfect when you are on an airplane or the subway system in New York. So if you do not have an offline article app, think about getting Pocket.
Who wants to waste time trying to find a location? The Google Maps App is great because it not only gives driving directions, but other alternative ways to get somewhere like on your bike or by public transportation.
I Heart Radio is another one of these apps that you think might be a waste of time and has nothing to do with productivity. However, I find that listening to music helps me relax and get into my own personal projects. I like I Heart Radio because I can listen to people having "Hot topic" conversation and it gives me a snipet of what is going on in the world.
I love the Ted app and website. I like going on either the app or website to become informed and taught to think outside the box or see something from a whole new perspective. That is what Ted does. I'll watch a video during my lunch break if I am eating alone. Many of them I find so inspirational.
Music helps get my creative juices flowing most of the time. If I need to be in a certain mood music can get me there. Soundhound makes life easier by easily telling me the name of a song that is playing on the radio. How does this app make one more productive? It eliminates the search for a song you heard in passing. I can be sitting in a doctors office and then on comes a song that I never heard before that I find inspiring and instead of me searching for it later and wasting time, I just tap the Soundhound app and learn the song. Later when I add that song to a playlist, I have wasted little time.
So you know how to listen to actual radio stations, you know how to find songs when you are in an analog setting, but how about taking your playlists with you. SPOTIFY! I don't know about you but I hate to carry the computer, the tablet, the smartphone and iPod (Mp3 player,) then making sure the songs I want to hear are on whatever device they need to be on.
With Spotify you can take your playlists with you, but you will be online for the free version (meaning it will use your data plans if not connect to wifi). If you want to take them offline, Spotify has a paid version and will download the songs to your device, (most of them anyway). Again, music helps add to creativity, boost productivity and give you energy – think about going a spin class and listening to classical. Yes, I am a big believer in the idea that music can help you achieve your desired goals and objectives.
I believe you should have one game app that you indulge in and I choose Words with Friends. This app helps boost productivity too. If you are blocked on a project and cannot work through it this app can help. This app, as fun as it may be, helps unblock your brain. It makes you think and see things a different way by rearranging letters. Sometimes even the words that are created by you or the other person might give you a spark to solve the puzzle you are working on.
You might on this one be telling me how does watching TV make you more productive. It is not the TV shows you are watching but the app that lets you program your DVR. Do you stop reading that article to watch your favorite TV show? Maybe you are doing something liking pinning to your Pinterest page then get caught up in show that was playing in the background. Maybe a bus you are on has an ad for an educational program you want to see that will inspire you.
Whatever your reasoning is, get the app from your cable provider. Don't stop living your life because you want to watch a show, and don't go searching on your cable guide to find the show or rerun of your show. Cable provider apps make searching for a show easier, setting your DVR and then moving about your life.
For my last app and resource that I use is Inspirational Quotes. This kind of resource has to be one that fits your personality. Someone might want a bible quote, a joke of the day, funny quotes, do a picture of the day, painting of the day. This is another one of the moments in your day where you look for the beautiful in all this craziness you face and have to do.
Happy hunting with your apps. Remember Apps can be time wasters (many social media ones and of course games), or apps can make and help you do things. How you choose to use those free in between minutes between life's obligations is up to you. What are your top apps and resources for improving productivity?


text:
Q: Why isn't my cancellation token killing this job? I believe I create and immediately cancel a task below. Yet, when running the below code, you'll note it spins forever. What gives? Why doesn't attaching src.Token cause the cancellation?
CancellationTokenSource src = new CancellationTokenSource();
Task t = Task.Run(()=>
                  {
                      while (true)
                      {
                          Thread.Sleep(100);
                      }
                  },
                  src.Token);

Thread.Sleep(1000);
src.Cancel();
t.Wait();

A: In your code Task.Run will be cancelled only if the token has been canceled before the task execution begun:
CancellationTokenSource src = new CancellationTokenSource();
src.Cancel();
Task t = Task.Run(()=>
                  {
                      while (true)
                      {
                          Thread.Sleep(100);
                      }
                  },
                  src.Token);

Thread.Sleep(1000);
t.Wait();

You can read more about this case in the official documentation
The alternative way is to pass the cancellation token to the Wait method:
CancellationTokenSource src = new CancellationTokenSource();
Task t = Task.Run(()=> {while (true) { Thread.Sleep(100); } },src.Token);
Thread.Sleep(1000);
src.Cancel();
t.Wait(src.Token);

In this case it behaves in exactly the same way as Task.Run does: "The wait terminates if a cancellation token is canceled before the task completes." (c) learn.microsoft.com
And the proper way to handle a cancellation is to check for the token state on each iteration of your long-running task:
CancellationTokenSource src = new CancellationTokenSource();
Task t = Task.Run(() =>
{
    while (true)
    {
        Thread.Sleep(100);
        src.Token.ThrowIfCancellationRequested();
    }
}, src.Token);
Thread.Sleep(1000);
src.Cancel();
t.Wait();

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
"""
This is an example of using Twisted Pair's Linux tun/tap integration to receive
and react to ethernet, ip, and udp datagrams as if the example process were a
network device reachable via a system network interface.

Some system setup is required to successfully run this example.  As a
privileged user (in other words, root), these commands will create the
necessary tap network interface:

$ ip tuntap add dev tap0 mode tap user ${USER_ID}
$ ip link set dev tap0 up
$ ip neigh add ${IP_ADDRESS} lladdr ${MAC_ADDRESS} dev tap0
$ ip route add to ${IP_NETWORK} dev tap0

Once you've done this, sending UDP datagrams to ${IP_ADDRESS} on port 42 will
trigger a response from this example.

Use the UID of the user you want to be able to run the example for ${USER_ID}
and use something like 10.0.0.0/24 for ${IP_NETWORK}.

Invent any valid value for ${MAC_ADDRESS} (though avoid re-using an address
already in use on your network).

See the Twisted Pair configuration howto for more information about this
system-level setup.

When the tap device is configured, the example is running, and a UDP datagram
is sent to the right address, the example will display information about the
datagram on its standard out.
"""

from __future__ import print_function

from sys import stdout

from twisted.internet import protocol
from twisted.internet.task import react
from twisted.internet.defer import Deferred
from twisted.pair.ethernet import EthernetProtocol
from twisted.pair.ip import IPProtocol
from twisted.pair.rawudp import RawUDPProtocol
from twisted.pair.tuntap import TuntapPort
from twisted.python.log import startLogging

class MyProto(protocol.DatagramProtocol):
    def datagramReceived(self, datagram, address):
        print('from', address, 'received', repr(datagram))

def main(reactor):
    startLogging(stdout, setStdout=False)
    udp = RawUDPProtocol()
    udp.addProto(42, MyProto())
    ip = IPProtocol()
    ip.addProto(17, udp)
    eth = EthernetProtocol()
    eth.addProto(0x800, ip)

    port = TuntapPort(interface='tap0', proto=eth, reactor=reactor)
    port.startListening()

    # Run forever
    return Deferred()

if __name__ == '__main__':
    react(main, [])

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Pendulum Rider
The Conservative Revisionist History
constitution.jpg
Fundamental philosophies in our country's history are now politicized buzzwords.
In today's buzz-word heavy culture, it's almost impossible to say a word like "socialist" without conjuring images of hammers and sickles or angry Tea Partiers waving anti-Obama banners. It's the same way that the word "democracy" still seems to be rallying word for some people until you say the word "capitalism", at which point their allegiance seems to shift a bit. It's really no surprise that some of the central vocabulary to our history as a nation has become perverted by the polarized political discourse and party-wrangling of the past several decades.
After all, Civics education in the U.S. is the consistently lowest performing content area and, according to recent studies show that nearly half of Americans can not name the three branches of their federal government. Only one in a hundred can name their state representative, and more people vote on reality television than they do for presidential elections. This is not the "educated electorate" that Thomas Jefferson envisioned in creating our public system of education, or our democratic process.
All the same, the United States is a socialist democratic society and a representative republican system of government. We use the republic form of government because it's more convenient for such massive populations of people, and because three hundred years ago we did not have the ability to make the voice of every citizen heard (which is a democratic system). All the same, we have espoused socialist democratic ideals throughout our history, consistently creating both competition and checks and balances against that competition, within our system. We have a public education system that is beholden to the voters and taxpayers to which it serves.
It was never meant to be a federal pet project, which it has become largely under Republican leadership in the last thirty years. We have a U.S. mail service that, due to technology and several successful alternatives, is being outpaced and made increasingly obsolete...until you look at rural areas where federal postal services are critical to the health of the community. We have several social safety nets which, after the incredible corruption and exploitation by government and the financial sector in the 1920's, became necessary to continue to serve the social well-being of the country. Those safety nets may have become a little less important to social welfare as a whole, but their placement was a large part of why our economy didn't bleed out after the 2008 crash. Public servants, likewise, are paid for doing those services that are central to the preservation of the nation through taxation. These are democratic socialist ideals, and they are a large part of who we are as a nation.
Therefore it concerns me that certain groups within the U.S. government are hailing competition and government limitation over these democratic socialist ideals, characterizing a shift of that nature as a "return" to the initial intentions of the creation of our country. First of all, to presume to know what those intentions are is foolish and arrogant. The architects of our Constitution created the document to be fluid, but to protect the inalienable and basic rights of its people (not corporations, which didn't come along until the end of the 19th century). Past that, I don't think they had particular intentions as stated in the document itself.
Secondly, the "return" that many of the radically conservative elements in Washington and state capitols advocate for is actually a return to the industrial explosion of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a time that saw outrageous growth in the private sector, consolidation of wealth at the top, and exploitation of the American middle class. These elements came together to cause the Great Depression, an economic catastrophe that's much closer to the 2008 crash in character than any other recession since.
To have individuals, pundits, lawmakers and lobbyists, advocating for that kind of policymaking so recently after an economic crash that was brought on by the same kinds of behaviors, is astounding. It's as if our economic recession of the past several years just wasn't bad enough to bring about real change. We have 1 in 100 people unemployed, instead of one in four. We had major banks (those responsible in the first place) flushed with cash and maintain their employees, rather than closing and laying off everyone. What will it take United States voters (other than a slightly better Civics education) to look at the reality, and not the rhetoric? Socialism isn't a bad word, it's actually a portion of our national history. Competition is good, but it's not the end. it's only a means to making life and prosperity attainable for the American citizen. That's the end.
Our world is improving....really.
Political and social commentary from above the public swing.
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r-UNITED-NATIONS-EUROPEAN-DEBT-CRISIS-large570.jpg
intro.jpg
The Apocalypse will be crowdsourced
r4-8b.gif
The march toward an open and equal society
deskjpg-6965e48b940846aa.jpg
If Schools Are Factories, Students Are Widgets
9543994-large.jpg
Stepping Off The Carousel
Businessman-working-late.jpg
Working longer hours does not make you better
220px-Dhaka_street_crowds.jpg
An Argument Against Population Control
scalia-gesture.jpg
SCOTUS: Activist Conservative Judges In "Highest Court"
fe8b6b5d-4392-4e73-a341-f62acbc04824.widec_.jpg
Education Reform: Designing The Classroom In The Boardroom
IRobot.jpg
The Digital World Is Already An "I, Robot" Scenario
corporate.jpg
School Inc.: The U.S. Education Reform and National Security Report
This makes perfect sense but
I am so glad that you focus
And here I thought it started
Re: The whole internet "fad"
this whole internet "fad"
We have definitely seen this

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


I couldn't find a GIF or even YouTube of this moment from Wet Hot American Summer. It's just a dumb line that I think about a lot. I own the movie on iTunes so I tried to make this from that, but apparently does a lot to prevent you from snipping bits from movies . So I rented it on YouTube to make this.


Jacob deGrom's Cy Young competition faced the Mets on Thursday and deGrom didn't get much run support again.
The Mets' ace was watching from the dugout, but, a big performance from the bats could have ended Max Scherzer's Cy Young campaign. But the Nats' ace gave up three runs over seven innings with 13 stirkeouts.
Scherzer was done in by the longball, giving up back-to-back home runs in the third inning. A two-run shot to Michael Conforto then a solo blast by Jay Bruce.
In a recent poll, 30 of 33 BBWAA voters said they would vote for deGrom (with the other three voting for Scherzer) in a potential Cy Young vote.
Scherzer has allowed 20 runs (all earned) over his last 39 innings spanning six starts as his ERA has risen from 2.11 to 2.57.
DeGrom will get his chance on Friday night as it's his turn to start. Can he bolden his Cy Young case?


text:
Wartime Medical Cooperation across the Pacific: Wilder Penfield and the Anglo-American Medical Missions to the Soviet Union and China, 1943-1944
v54n3-289-298.pdf (5.98 MB)
Avery, Donald
In July 1943, Wilder Penfield, an internationally renowned Canadian neurosurgeon, led a high-profile group of Anglo-American surgeons in a 3-week tour of Soviet medical facilities and battlefield hospitals. This venture paved the way for other medical missions, both Allied and Soviet, and the communication of medical information. This was followed by a mission to China, to provide assistance to the government of Chiang Kai-shek. The most important connection was, however, between Western medical scientists and their counterparts in the Soviet Union, a relationship that lasted until the advent of the Cold War. In this paper the exchange is examined, and it is argued that the surgical mission was a major catalyst in the creation of an extensive system of wartime medical interchange, which inspired hope for future cooperation in the postwar world.
Avery D. 2000. Wartime medical cooperation across the Pacific: Wilder Penfield and the Anglo-American medical missions to the Soviet Union and China, 1943-1944. Pac Sci 54(3): 289-298.


text:
De Slag bij High Bridge vond plaats op 6 april en 7 april 1865 als deel van de Appomattox-veldtocht tijdens de Amerikaanse Burgeroorlog.

Wat voorafging
Zes kilometer ten noordoosten van Farmville staat de High Bridge. Over de brug liep de South Side spoorweg. Dit was een strategische oversteekplaats en bevoorradingsweg voor Robert E. Lee en zijn leger tijdens de Appomattox-veldtocht. Naast de spoorwegbrug lag een brug voor wegvervoer.
Tijdens de terugtocht na de nederlaag bij de slag bij Five Forks, wilde Lee zijn leger veilig aan de andere kant van de oever van de Appomattoxrivier krijgen via deze bruggen. Wanneer hij daar in slaagde moest het korps onder leiding van James Longstreet functioneren als achterhoede. Hij moest de bruggen vernietigen zodat de opmars van de Noordelijken vertraagd kon worden.

Op 6 april 1865 stuurde Longstreet 1.200 cavaleristen, onder leiding van generaals majoor W.H.F. Lee en Thomas L. Rosser, om de bruggen te beschermen tegen Noordelijke verkenningseenheden. De Noordelijke generaal majoor Edward Rod stuurde 900 man, onder leiding van kolonel Thomas Read vooruit om de bruggen in te nemen. Deze eenheid bestond uit de 123th Ohio Infantry, de 54th Pennsylvania Infantry en drie compagnieën 4th Massachusetts Cavalry. De cavalerie-eenheid stond onder leiding van kolonel Francis Washburn. Ze slaagden erin van de bruggen te bereiken voor de Zuidelijke eenheden. Enkele wachtposten werden overrompeld en de Noordelijken veroverden de zuidelijke kant van de brug.

De slag
Kolonel Washburn en zijn mannen voerden de voorbereidingen uit om de brug onklaar te maken. Op dit moment arriveerden drie brigades Zuidelijke cavalerie. Ze voerden een aanval uit op de nabijgelegen Noordelijke infanterie nabij Watson Farmhouse, een kleine kilometer ten noorden van de bruggen. Bij het horen van de geweerschoten, haastten Washburn en zijn mannen zich naar de infanterie om steun te verlenen. Read stuurde de 4th Massachusetts ten aanval. Deze charge brak door de Zuidelijke linies waarvan brigade generaal Thomas T. Munford de bevelhebber was. In de hevige man-tegen-mangevechten sneuvelden verschillende hogere officieren langs beide kanten. De Zuidelijken voerde een tegenaanval uit. De Noordelijke infanterie en cavalerie werd door deze aanval van elkaar gescheiden. Na nog een aanval werd de Noordelijke cavalerie omsingeld waarbij ze allemaal gewond, gedood of gevangengenomen werden.

Dankzij deze gevechten slaagde het Zuidelijk II korps erin de bruggen over te geraken nadat dit korps verslagen werd in de Slag bij Sayler's Creek. Een divisie onder bevel van generaal majoor William Mahon slaagden erin van de brug volledig intact te houden. De rest van Lee's leger kwam samen bij Farmville, waar ondertussen de nodige voorraden klaar stonden.

Terwijl de mannen van Mahone de twee bruggen probeerden te verbranden in de vroege ochtend van 7 april 1865, arriveerden het Noordelijke II korps onder leiding van generaal majoor Andrew A. Humphreys het slagveld. De divisie van Francis C. Barlow vielen de Zuidelijken aan en slaagden erin van het grootste deel van de bruggen te redden. De noordelijken staken de kleinere brug over en zetten hun achtervolging van het uitgehongerde leger van Lee verder.

Na de slag
De gevechten bij de bruggen waren tactisch onbeslist. Lee had zijn leger aan de ander zijde van de Appomattoxrivier gekregen, maar hij had zijn troepen niet kunnen bevoorraden bij Farmville. De volgende plaats waar zich voorraad bevond, was Appomattox station, 37 km ten westen van de bruggen. In de nacht van 7 april ontving Lee een boodschap van Ulysses S. Grant met het voorstel tot overgave van het Zuidelijke leger. Lee hield voorlopig de boot af. Als hij zijn leger naar Appomattox station kon brengen en hen bevoorraden, was er nog hoop. Hij stuurde een brief terug naar Grant om te vragen wat de overgave precies inhield. Zo hoopte Lee kostbare tijd te winnen voor zijn leger.

Bronnen
 Eicher, David J., The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War, Simon & Schuster, 2001, ISBN 0-684-84944-5.
 Kennedy, Frances H., Ed., The Civil War Battlefield Guide, 2nd ed., Houghton Mifflin Co., 1998, ISBN 0-395-74012-6.
 Korn, Jerry, and the Editors of Time-Life Books, Pursuit to Appomattox: The Last Battles, Time-Life Books, 1987, ISBN 0-8094-4788-6.
 Salmon, John S., The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide, Stackpole Books, 2001, ISBN 0-8117-2868-4.
 National Park Service - High Bridge

High Bridge
Slag High B
1865

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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text:
Tommy Bridges
Born: (1906-12-28)December 28, 1906
Gordonsville, Tennessee
Died: April 19, 1968(1968-04-19) (aged 61)
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
August 13, 1930, for the Detroit Tigers
Last MLB appearance
July 20, 1946, for the Detroit Tigers
MLB statistics
Win–loss record
Earned run average
Detroit Tigers (1930–1943; 1945–1946)
6× All-Star (1934–1937, 1939, 1940)
2× World Series champion (1935, 1945)
AL wins leader (1936)
2× AL strikeout leader (1935, 1936)
Thomas Jefferson Davis Bridges (December 28, 1906 – April 19, 1968) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played his entire career with the Detroit Tigers from 1930 to 1946. During the 1930s, he used an outstanding curveball to become one of the mainstays of the team's pitching staff, winning 20 games in three consecutive seasons and helping the team to its first World Series championship with two victories in the 1935 Series. He retired with 1,674 career strikeouts, then the eighth highest total in American League history, and held the Tigers franchise record for career strikeouts from 1941 to 1951.
Born in Gordonsville, Tennessee, Bridges attended the University of Tennessee, and after having a 20-strikeout game for the minor league Wheeling Stogies in 1929, he joined the Tigers in 1930, inducing Babe Ruth to ground out on his first major league pitch.
On August 5, 1932, he came within one out of throwing a perfect game. With two outs in the ninth inning, and the Washington Senators trailing 13–0, the Senators pitcher was due to bat. Washington manager Walter Johnson sent pinch hitter Dave Harris to bat, who led the AL that season with 14 pinch hits. Harris hit a single to break up the perfect game.[1]
He one-hit the St. Louis Browns on April 23, 1933, at Navin Field. Bridges had another one-hitter against the Senators, on May 24, 1933, allowing a home run to Joe Kuhel in the eighth inning. On September 24, 1933, Bridges reached the ninth inning with a no-hitter for the fourth time in two years. This time, he gave up a pair of hits but beat the St Louis Browns 2–1. For the 1933 season, Bridges had a 3.09 earned run average (ERA) (139 Adjusted ERA+), second-best in the American League.
1934–1935 seasons
In 1934, Bridges was 22–11 with 23 complete games to help the Tigers win their first pennant in 25 years. Bridges also surrendered Ruth's 700th home run on July 13, 1934. In the 1934 World Series, Bridges pitched a complete-game victory, beating Dizzy Dean 3–1 in Game 5, but the Tigers lost the Series in seven games.
Bridges had another strong season in 1935, going 21–10 with 23 complete games. He also pitched a complete-game victory in the last game of the 1935 World Series. With the score tied 3–3 in the top of the ninth, Bridges gave up a leadoff triple to Stan Hack, but retired the next three batters without the runner on third scoring. In the bottom of the ninth, Goose Goslin drove in the winning run with two outs, and the Tigers won their first championship. After the game, manager Mickey Cochrane said the following of Bridges's gutsy performance:
A hundred and fifty pounds of courage. If there ever is a payoff on courage, this little 150 pound pitcher is the greatest World Series hero.
In a nationwide poll Bridges was named the No. 2 sports hero of 1935, behind Notre Dame football player Andy Pilney.[2]
After winning over 20 games in both 1934 and 1935, Bridges led the AL in 1936 with 23 wins, and finished ninth in the MVP voting.
On August 11, 1942, Bridges was involved in one of the great pitching duels of all time. Cleveland starter, Al Milnar had a no-hitter until Doc Cramer singled with two out in the 9th. Milnar's scoreless duel with Bridges ended in a 14-inning scoreless tie because the rules did not permit the game to be continued under the lights.
Career record
Bridges was one of the best pitchers in baseball from 1931 until 1943, when he entered the Army.
He was among the league leaders in ERA 10 times between 1932 and 1943, including a career-low 2.39 ERA in 1943—the year before Bridges entered the Army.
Over his major league career, he compiled an Adjusted ERA+ of 126—ranking 54th best in major league history. Though his unadjusted ERA is less impressive because of the high batting averages in the years in which he pitched, Bridges had an Adjusted ERA+ in excess of 140 on six occasions: 1932–33, 1939–40, 1942–43.
He was named an All-Star six times between 1934 and 1940, missing out only in 1938 due to an injury.
Bridges was also a consistent leader in strikeouts. He led the AL in strikeouts in 1935 and 1936, and was among the league leaders 12 times: 1931–40, 1942–43. Even more telling, he was among the top three in the league in strikeouts per nine innings pitched on 7 occasions: 1931, 1935–36, 1939–40, 1942–43.
In 1941, he set the Tigers career strikeout record, surpassing George Mullin's mark of 1,380. His team record for career strikeouts was broken in 1951 by Hal Newhouser, and remained the top mark for a right-hander until Jack Morris broke it in 1988.
Bridges' career record with the Tigers was 194–138 with a 3.57 ERA.
Bridges said that "Movement, location, and change of speed is the key to pitching success."[3]
Bridges during World War II
Bridges served in the U.S. Army during World War II, missing the entire 1944 season and coming back in time for only one start in 1945. He was a member of the Tigers 1945 World Series championship team, his fourth Series, making a relief appearance in Game 6.
Bridges and Hank Greenberg are the only players in Detroit Tigers history to play in four World Series for the team, having appeared in the 1934, 1935, 1940, and 1945 World Series.
Pacific Coast League
Sent to the minors in 1946, he pitched for four years with the Portland Beavers in the Pacific Coast League. On April 20, 1947, pitching for Beavers, Bridges finally got his no-hitter, beating San Francisco 2–0. Bridges also led the Pacific Coast League in ERA in 1947, but never pitched in the majors again.
Life after baseball
Bridges' life outside the major leagues took a downward turn, in part due to alcoholism, which developed during his war service.[4] In 1950 Bridges left his wife for another woman; former teammates were shocked by his appearance.[5] In 1951, he became a scout and coach for the Cincinnati Reds, and he was later a scout for the Tigers, and New York Mets.
Bridges died in Nashville, Tennessee in 1968 at age 61.[6]
List of Major League Baseball annual strikeout leaders
List of Major League Baseball annual wins leaders
List of Major League Baseball players who spent their entire career with one franchise
List of Detroit Tigers team records
^ "Tommy Bridges". Baseball Library. Archived from the original on October 15, 2013. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
^ "Tommy Bridges". SABR. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
^ Garver, Ned; Bozman, Bill; Joyner, Ronnie (2003). Touching All the Bases. Pepperpot Productions, Inc. p. 133. ASIN B00B6JBVV6.
^ Berger, Ralph. "Tommy Bridges at SABR Baseball Project". SABR. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
^ James, Bill (2001). The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract. Simon & Schuster. p. 901. ISBN 9781439106938. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
^ "Tommy Bridges dies". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. April 20, 1968. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
The Deadball Era
Tommy Bridges at Find a Grave
Detroit Tigers 1935 World Series champions
2 Charlie Gehringer
3 Mickey Cochrane
4 Goose Goslin
5 Hank Greenberg (AL MVP)
6 Gee Walker
7 Billy Rogell
8 Marv Owen
9 Pete Fox
10 Tommy Bridges
11 Firpo Marberry
12 Clyde Hatter
13 Elden Auker
14 Schoolboy Rowe
15 Hugh Shelley
15 Carl Fischer
16 Alvin Crowder
17 Elon Hogsett
18 Vic Sorrell
19 Joe Sullivan
21 Frank Reiber
22 Heinie Schuble
23 Ray Hayworth
24 Flea Clifton
25 Jo-Jo White
26 Roxie Lawson
27 Chet Morgan
30 Hub Walker
31 Cy Perkins
32 Del Baker
1 Bob Swift
2 Ed Mierkowicz
3 Eddie Mayo
4 Rudy York
5 Hank Greenberg
6 Roy Cullenbine
7 Joe Hoover
8 Doc Cramer
9 Paul Richards
11 Dizzy Trout
12 John McHale
14 Jim Tobin
15 Les Mueller
16 Hal Newhouser (AL MVP)
17 Zeb Eaton
18 Stubby Overmire
19 Al Benton
20 Billy Pierce
21 Art Houtteman
22 Bob Maier
23 Hack Miller
24 Walter Wilson
25 George Caster
26 Chuck Hostetler
27 Jimmy Outlaw
28 Skeeter Webb
30 Red Borom
35 Virgil Trucks
36 Prince Oana
32 Steve O'Neill
31 Art Mills
Detroit Tigers Opening Day starting pitchers
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Jean Dubuc
Howard Ehmke
Mark Fidrych
Ned Garver
Steve Gromek
Bill Gullickson
Fred Hutchinson
Jason Johnson
Frank Lary
Roxie Lawson
Dutch Leonard
Felipe Lira
Mickey Lolich
Firpo Marberry
Mike Maroth
Denny McLain
Roscoe Miller
Brian Moehler
Don Mossi
George Mullin
Hal Newhouser
Bobo Newsom
Hideo Nomo
Red Oldham
Phil Regan
Dave Roberts
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Dave Rozema
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Jordan Zimmermann
American League season wins leaders
1901: Young
1904: Chesbro
1905: Waddell
1906: Orth
1907: Joss & White
1908: Walsh
1909: Mullin
1910: Coombs
1912: S. J. Wood
1913: Johnson
1917: Cicotte
1920: Bagby
1921: Mays & Shocker
1922: Rommel
1923: Uhle
1925: Lyons & Rommel
1927: W. Hoyt & Lyons
1928: Grove & Pipgras
1929: Earnshaw
1930: Grove
1932: Crowder
1933: Crowder & Grove
1934: Gomez
1935: Ferrell
1936: Bridges
1938: Ruffing
1939: Feller
1942: Hughson
1943: Chandler & Trout
1944: Newhouser
1946: Feller & Newhouser
1949: Parnell
1950: Lemon
1952: Shantz
1953: Porterfield
1954: Lemon & Wynn
1955: Ford, Lemon & Sullivan
1956: Lary
1957: Bunning & Pierce
1958: Turley
1959: Wynn
1960: Estrada & J. Perry
1961: Ford
1962: Terry
1964: Chance & Peters
1965: Grant
1966: Kaat
1967: Lonborg & Wilson
1968: McLain
1970: Cuellar, McNally & J. Perry
1971: Lolich
1972: G. Perry & W. Wood
1973: W. Wood
1974: Hunter & Jenkins
1975: Hunter & Palmer
1976: Palmer
1977: Goltz, Leonard & Palmer
1978: Guidry
1979: Flanagan
1980: Stone
1981: D. Martínez, McCatty, Morris & Vuckovich
1982: L. Hoyt
1984: Boddicker
1986: Clemens
1987: Clemens & Stewart
1988: Viola
1989: Saberhagen
1990: Welch
1991: Erickson & Gullickson
1992: Brown & Morris
1993: McDowell
1994: Key
1995: Mussina
1996: Pettitte
1998: Clemens, Cone & Helling
1999: P. Martínez
2000: Hudson & Wells
2001: Mulder
2002: Zito
2003: Halladay
2004: Schilling
2005: Colón
2006: Santana & Wang
2007: Beckett
2008: Lee
2009: Hernández, Sabathia & Verlander
2010: Sabathia
2011: Verlander
2012: Price & Weaver
2013: Scherzer
2014: Kluber, Scherzer & Weaver
2015: Keuchel
2016: Porcello
2017: Carrasco, Kluber & Vargas
2018: Snell
2020: Bieber
American League season strikeout leaders
1909: Smith
1910: W. Johnson
1920: Coveleski
1922: Shocker
1942: Hughson & Newsom
1943: Reynolds
1949: Trucks
1951: Raschi
1953: Pierce
1955: Score
1959: Bunning
1961: Pascual
1964: Downing
1967: Lonborg
1972: Ryan
1975: Tanana
1980: Barker
1982: Bannister
1983: Morris
1984: Langston
1985: Blyleven
1992: R. Johnson
1999: Martínez
2001: Nomo
2003: Loaiza
2004: Santana
2007: Kazmir
2008: Burnett
2010: Weaver
2013: Darvish
2014: Price
2015: Sale
2021: Ray
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text:
Q: mifare 4k classic write does not work as expected I want to write to a mifare classic 4k, using the following APDU command (UPDATE BINARY):
APDU = {FF D6 00 20 10 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 0A 0B 0C 0D 0E 0Fh}

It seems fine as a get a 90 00 result...
but when i read the card back I always got the following (even with different data...):
sector: 8 (block 32), auth OK
032: D5 41 00 EA 00 FF 13 3E 86 6A 00 00 00 00 69 FF
033: D5 41 00 EA 00 FF 13 3E 86 6A 00 00 00 00 69 FF
034: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
035: 00 00 00 00 00 00 FF 07 80 69 FF FF FF FF FF FF

where does this string D5 41 00 EA 00 FF 13 3E 86 6A 00 00 00 00 69 FF come from?
Note that i didn't change any setting on the card and was properly authenticated. It was a blank card and i didn't touch the trailer.
I m using a ACR122 reader (this command comes direct from the documentation of the reader...)

A: Ok i found my problem, i was setting the wrong size for the cbSendLength parameter in SCardTransmit.
Now i set the correct one (the whole size of the APDU command: 21) and it works fine.
Sorry.


The Acer Aspire One comes in five different models, the A0532h, A0533, A0521, A0721, and AOD260. Each Acer model's features vary. However, one feature is consistent with all models--a built-in camera. The Acer built-in camera is also referred to as the "Acer Crystal Eye Webcam." The Crystal Eye webcam can be used to video chat through instant messenger programs. It can also be used with other programs that allow you to do online streaming with your camera.
Use your Acer Aspire One Crystal Eye camera.
Check to make sure your camera is working properly. To do this, click on your Windows "Start" button. Select "All Programs." Click on "Acer Crystal Eye Webcam." This turns on the webcam. If you see yourself on the computer monitor, it means that your webcam is working properly. You can now close out of the webcam window.
Open the Internet program that you would like to use the camera with. For example, you can use instant messenger programs, like Skype. You can also use programs such as Ustream and LiveStream that allow you to do online video streams from your web.
Click on the "Camera" icon that is located inside of the instant messenger program or other streaming program that you are using.
Look into the camera and begin talking. The camera is centered at the top of your laptop monitor. The person you are talking to will be able to see you on his computer monitor.


I'm 25 and over the last couple of months I have become much more bothered about what I'm putting on my skin. I used to have the occasional face pack night which was funny and everything but other than that I didn't care for my skin as such.
But for whatever reason I started to care and since then have put a bit of a beauty regime together which I think works for my normal/slightly dry skin.
It all starts in the morning with Clinquie Quick Start. I purchased it on the way back from Benidorm and even though it was a impulse purchase(it had been a long time since I'd shopped) I can see that it really is starting to make a difference on my 'black bags' and because of its nifty design you don't need to get all creamed up.
It smells and feels amazing and I only use half a pipette per application. It gives your face a really smooth feel and what I think of as a great barrier between my face and the make up.
I have a shower every evening, I sort of feel it's like washing the day away. And I use two items daily. And one weekly.
Clinique & Soaper Duper body wash. I purchased the Clinique bottle years ago and I'm making it last due to the fact I simply can't find it on their website. The little beads and the cool wash it gives your face is super refreshing. The Soaper Duper is a new find from Glossybox. It's rich and cream Shea butter and the smell and silkiness feel lovely over your skin.
Now I'm not a huge fan of bodyshop as their products often bring me out in a rash. But this stuff feels great on my skin and I do feel it helps. I apply it to my arms and feet mainly(don't ask my why but they're the lucky areas of my body that get the treatment). It's a dead skin remover and you work it into your skin in circular motions and the dead skin literally comes off just like that. It comes of in like mini balls of skin, it's insane. And it leaves your skin feeling great.
I hope this guide to my skin products makes you consider yours.
Have an amazing day people.


Mashed potatoes may be the side dish that people take for granted on their dinner plates, but they're a staple that would be missed at Christmas and Thanksgiving dinner if not included. If you want to master the art of light and fluffy mashed potatoes, give this homemade mashed potatoes recipe a try!
Peel the potatoes and clean them. Cut the potatoes into pieces (big enough). Put them in a saucepan in water, a little salt. Cook until tender.
When the desired cooking is reached, drain the potatoes and let stand on the burner for a few minutes, allowing the remaining water to evaporate, which will give a better texture to the potatoes.
Mince a clove of garlic and mix well with the potatoes.


Peak District – First Steps.
Although disputed by the Peak District National Park Authority, with an estimated 22 million visitors per year it is thought to be the second most-visited national park in the world, after the Mount Fuji in Japan. The authority estimate around 10 million people visit annually, a substantial difference between the two estimates and part of the reason why I have avoided the area, preferring the less visited areas of the country for my photographic journey. Living within a fairly short distance of the Peak District all my life, driven through it on many occasions and even hiked there when I was a teenager it was only recently that I made my first photo trip to the park and then only by chance.
Due to the poor weather so far this summer my longer photo trips have been postponed and as there was a reasonable afternoon in prospect I decided to take my camper van for a drive out and headed south towards Leek with the intention of then heading over to Buxton before returning home. The advice is never to leave home without your camera and so with gear on board I was soon beyond Leek and before me was The Roaches, with Hen Cloud, Five Clouds and Ramshaw Rocks, forming the gritstone escarpment which marks the southwestern edge of the Peak. They stand like a line of silent sentinels guarding the entrance to the Peak District, worn into fantastic shapes by the elements. This view was my inspiration so I decided to head over to the base of the Roaches to take my first steps on this section of my photography journey around the British Isles. Having parked the camper I immediately headed towards the base of the Roaches and spotted in the distance a lone tree and thought that it would make a good subject for my first image having waited patiently around for the better light of late afternoon to develop.
Shortly after and on the descent from the Roaches I headed over towards the outer wall of Rock Hall Cottage, once the domain of the gamekeepers of the Swythamley estate and now used by the British Mountaineering Council. Whilst looking for other opportunities I happen to notice an unusual cloud formation in the sky. My first thoughts were that it had been created by the vapour trail of a passing aircraft but the more I looked the more I was convinced that it was a cloud the likes of which I had not seen before.
Quickly composing the best point of view I managed to capture the image above and later to find that this is a feather cloud. These delicate strokes of high altitude ice crystals are part of the cirrus family of clouds also known as mare's tails. Seeing feathers in clouds suggests that its time to have faith and trust in yourself and your own abilities. It is time to tackle and overcome personal obstacles.
So my first photographic steps in the Peak District were successful especially capturing the cloud formation and maybe it was a sign for me to put aside my reason for not visiting the area more often and to return to capture more images of my local National Park.