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Panasonic Corp. And Related Entity Resolve $280 Million Avionics Industry FCPA Enforcement Action
By Mike Koehler on April 30, 2018 in 2018 Enforcement Actions, Airline Industry, Auditing Issues, Books and Records, China, DOJ Enforcement Action, Due Diligence, FCPA Related Charges, Foreign Issuers, Internal Controls, Middle East, Monitor, Panasonic, SEC Enforcement Action, SOX Certification Issues, Third Parties
Yesterday, the DOJ and SEC announced (here and here) a parallel Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement action against Japan-based Panasonic Corp. and a U.S. subsidiary Panasonic Avionics Corp. (PAC).
As stated in the enforcement action, Panasonic was an issuer until April 2013 and again "for a brief period between 2015 and 2016 as a result of a share swap that retriggered Panasonic's obligation to file its financial statements with the SEC."
As highlighted in this post, the enforcement action consisted of:
A criminal information against Panasonic Avionics Corp. charging knowing and willful violations of the FCPA's books and records provisions resolved through a deferred prosecution agreement in which PAC agreed to pay an approximate $137 million criminal penalty; and
An administrative cease and desist order against Panasonic finding FCPA anti-bribery, books and records, and internal controls violations in which the company agreed to pay approximately $143 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest. (The SEC action also found that Panasonic materially overstated its pre-tax income in connection with the core conduct).
Panasonic Avionics Corp., headquartered in California, is described as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Panasonic that designs and distributes in-flight entertainment systems (IFE) and global communications services (GCS) for airlines and airplane manufacturers.
Under the heading "Overview of the Scheme," the information alleges:
"Between 2007 and 2013, PAC employees, including senior executives, engaged in a scheme to retain consultants for improper purposes other than for providing actual consulting services. The consultants were retained through Service Provider [described as a California corporation related to another corporation retained by PAC for technical publication services] and were paid for out of a budget over which PAC Executive 1 [described as an officer and high-level executive of PAC from at least 2005 until he was separated from the Company in 2017] had complete control and discretion without meaningful oversight by anyone at PAC or Panasonic. First, in July 2007, PAC executives began negotiating a consulting position with Foreign Official [described as a senior contracts official at Middle East Airline until February 2008 – the Middle East Airline is described as a commercial airline based in the Middle East that is wholly-owned by a foreign government] at the same time that Foreign Official was involved in negotiating a lucrative contract amendment on behalf of Middle East Airline with PAC. Although Foreign Official ultimately did little work for PAC, over a six-year period PAC made $875,000 in payments to Foreign Official that were accounted for in Panasonic's accounting books and records as legitimate consulting expenses. Second, in October 2007, PAC retained as a consultant Domestic Airline Consultant [employed as an account manager at PAC until April 2007 who then served as a consultant for Domestic Airline until December 2013 – the Domestic Airline is described as publicly-owned commercial airlines based in the U.S.] who was already working as a consultant for Domestic Airline, and then used Domestic Airline Consultant to obtain confidential non-public business information about the airline, including information about its negotiations with PAC competitors. Over a five-year period, PAC made $825,000 in payments to Domestic Airline Consultant that were accounted for in Panasonic's accounting books and records as legitimate consulting expenses. Despite knowing that PAC was falsely recording these payments as legitimate consulting expenses, PAC Executive 1 falsely certified in Sarbanes-Oxley certifications that "no deficiencies have been identified and the internal control[s] over financial reporting have effectively functioned in [the] company."
Between 2007 and 2016, certain PAC employees also concealed PAC's use of sales agents in Asia, some of which did not pass PAC's internal diligence requirements. PAC formally terminated its relationship with these sales agents, as required by PAC's compliance policies, but certain PAC employees then secretly continued to use the agents by having them rehired as subagents through PAC Sales Agent 2 [described as a sales agent based in Malaysia that PAC contracted directly with to obtain and manage contracts with multiple airlines, including state-owned airlines, throughout Asia until PAC terminated its contract in 2015], which had passed PAC's due diligence checks. Through this process, PAC employees hid more than $7 million in payments to at least thirteen sub-agents, some of which had not passed due diligence checks, by improperly reporting them as legitimate commission payments to PAC Sales Agent 2 or other sales agents. Despite receiving warnings and red flags about this conduct, PAC Executive 2 and other PAC employees took no action to prevent the continued use of PAC Sales Agent 2 to funnel payments to other sales agents."
Regarding the budget the PAC executive had control over, the information alleges:
"To cover expenses incurred by at least one senior PAC executive, such as travel, corporate entertainment, and consultancy payments, PAC designated an Office of the President Budget. The Office of the President Budget was set annually by a PAC finance executive, in consultation with PAC Executive 1. The funds allocated to the Office of the President Budget were set on a yearly basis, based on the previous year's costs and adjusted if changes in expenses were expected. The Office of the President Budget was neither reviewed nor approved by any Panasonic personnel. During the relevant period, the amount allocated to the Office of the President Budget exceeded several hundred thousand dollars per year.
Funds expended from the Office of the President Budget were booked on PAC's general ledger in various categories, including travel, payroll, and consultant payments. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Panasonic, PAC's financials were consolidated into Panasonic's books, records, and accounts. Expenses from the Office of the President Budget would roll up into the "other general administrative expenses" line item on the books of a Panasonic reporting segment and then ultimately into the "selling and general administrative expenses" line item on Panasonic's books, records, and accounts.
Despite providing for a discretionary fund, PAC failed to maintain internal accounting controls reasonably designed to ensure that funds expended from the Office of the President Budget were used for their intended purposes, were used in accordance with the law, and were properly recorded in PAC's, and ultimately Panasonic's, books and records. In fact, PAC Executive 1 had complete discretion over how to spend the funds allocated in the budget without meaningful oversight by PAC Finance or any other personnel at PAC.
Beginning in at least October 2007 and continuing until at least January 2014, PAC Executive 1 used the Office of the President Budget to make payments to multiple individuals, including consultants that performed limited or no work for PAC with little to no supervision by anyone at PAC."
Regarding the service provider through which the consultants were retained, the information alleges:
"Instead of paying these consultants directly from PAC, PAC Executive 1 arranged for these consultants to be formally retained, and paid, through Service Provider. Other than providing basic administrative and payroll services, Service Provider was not involved in managing or otherwise working with the consultants, but instead acted as a pass through for purposes of invoicing PAC for the consultants, with PAC paying Service Provider a percentage of the consultant's payments. PAC would then pay the consultants through Service Provider for consulting work ostensibly provided by the consultants, even when there was little or no evidence of services being performed to justify the payments."
The information then alleges that in 2010 PAC Executive 3 (described as a senior finance executive at PAC from approximately 2009 until June 2012 when he left PAC to assume a finance position within Panasonic) "requested PAC's Internal Audit Department conduct an audit of PAC's 'vendor selection, payment processing and contract execution." The information then alleges:
"At the conclusion of the audit, PAC's Internal Audit Department issued a report (the "Selected Vendor Audit Report") that identified a number of compliance risks associated with PAC's use of Service Provider to retain and pay consultants, including the lack of supervision over certain consultants and a lack of deliverables provided to PAC from both Service Provider and the consultants themselves.
Specifically, the Selected Vendor Audit Report identified as a "critical risk" that PAC continued to pay consultants through Service Provider even though PAC's agreement with Service Provider had expired in May 2009. In addition, the report identified as a "high risk" the fact that payments were made to multiple consultants in the absence of any deliverables provided to PAC. The report also noted that PAC's procurement department was "not involved in hiring these consultants" and that the "visibility of the contract process needs to be enhanced." An initial version of the report, drafted in September 2010, concluded with a recommendation that "[Service Provider] consultant payments should be carefully reviewed in light of FCPA regulation [sic] due to lack of clarity in deliverables." PAC Executive 3 received this version of the Selected Vendor Audit Report in March 2011 and other senior PAC executives received this report in May 2012.
In December of 2010, an abbreviated version of the Selected Vendor Audit Report was circulated among other PAC employees, including PAC Executive 2 and PAC Executive 3. PAC Executive 4 received this version of the report in November 2012. Although this version of the Selected Vendor Audit Report still identified the risks associated with the payments made through Service Provider and the lack of deliverables for certain consultants, it omitted the final concluding recommendation mentioning the FCPA and certain other observations and recommendations, including the recommendation that "[p]rocurement should be consulted prior to hiring any consultant or vendors." No explanation was provided for omitting these additional comments from the Selected Vendor Audit Report.
Despite the repeated distribution of these two versions of the Selected Vendor Audit Report between 2010 and 2012 among several PAC employees, including PAC Executive 2, PAC Executive 3, and PAC Executive 4, PAC failed to conduct any significant follow up to address the issues raised by the report. Although, in response to a request from PAC, Service Provider began to seek activity reports from consultants as to the work they provided on behalf of PAC, such reports and other deliverables were provided only on an intermittent basis and typically provided very little detail as to the nature of the work performed."
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Thereafter, the information alleges that the Foreign Official has the ability to take official action and exert official influence over certain contractual terms" concerning a contract with Middle East Airline. The information alleges that "Foreign Official primarily negotiated with PAC through PAC Sales Agent 1" and:
"Beginning in April 2007, PAC Sales Agent 1 and Foreign Official began discussing a potential consultancy position for Foreign Official with PAC, while Foreign Official was still employed by Middle East Airline and working on Amendment 2. In May 2007, PAC Sales Agent 1 began advocating for a position for Foreign Official with PAC executives, and in July 2007, substantive discussions among PAC senior personnel, including PAC Executive 1 and PAC Executive 2, regarding a consultant position for Foreign Official began in earnest. Contract negotiations between Foreign Official and PAC continued through the fall of 2007, with PAC ultimately making Foreign Official an offer of a consultant position with an annual salary of $200,000 in late October 2007, while Foreign Official was still employed by Middle East Airline.
The master agreement between Middle East Airline and PAC prohibited PAC from offering any consideration to employees of Middle East Airline. As a result, PAC Sales Agent 1 and PAC senior executives discussed the need to be circumspect about the negotiations surrounding the consultancy offer to Foreign Official and the "risk" that PAC was assuming in making a job offer to Foreign Official while he was still employed by Middle East Airline.
Foreign Official resigned from Middle East Airline in February 2008 and was formally retained as a consultant for PAC through Service Provider in April 2008. Foreign Official performed minimal work in his six years of service as a consultant for PAC. Significantly, the 2010 Selected Vendor Audit Report noted that PAC's Internal Audit Department was unable to locate deliverables associated with Foreign Official's consultancy. According to the report, after following up with PAC employees, representatives of the Internal Audit Department were told that deliverables for Foreign Official did not exist because PAC had requested no services of Foreign Official in the twelve months prior to the report, although PAC still paid Foreign Official's invoices.
Foreign Official's fees were paid out of the Office of the President Budget through Service Provider. These payments were made in the absence of effective internal accounting controls, including PAC's failure to define the "consulting services" to be provided or obtain sufficient documentation to substantiate the nature and appropriate value of the "consulting services" provided by Foreign Official. Between 2008 and 2014, PAC paid Foreign Official through Service Provider a total of $875,000 in payments, which were mischaracterized as "consultant payments" on PAC's general ledger, when in fact none, or very few, of the payments to Foreign Official was for actual consultant services. PAC then caused the payments made to Foreign Official through Service Provider ultimately to be incorrectly designated as "selling and general administrative expenses" on Panasonic's books, records, and accounts.
Between April 2007, when negotiations began with Foreign Official concerning an offer of a consultant position at PAC, and March 2013, PAC earned $92,805,432 in profits from Middle East Airline attributable to twelve programs subsumed under [the contract] for which Foreign Official had some involvement or influence, including the IFE retrofit and reconfiguration contracts and contracts for which NRE and STC costs were included."
Regarding the "Domestic Airline Consultant," the information alleges in pertinent part:
"Domestic Airline Consultant worked as an account manager at PAC from 2000 until April 2007, when he left PAC to serve as a consultant for Domestic Airline, one of PAC's largest customers at the time. In October 2007, while Domestic Airline Consultant was still working as a consultant to Domestic Airline, PAC Executive 1 arranged for Domestic Airline Consultant to be hired by Service Provider to serve as a consultant for PAC effective August 2007. At the time, Domestic Airline Consultant had the ability to take action and exert influence over the business relationship between Domestic Airline and PAC. Domestic Airline Consultant's fees were paid out of the Office of the President Budget through Service Provider. Domestic Airline Consultant served in this dual consultancy role until December 2013 when he returned to PAC as an employee of the Company. Domestic Airline Consultant was separated from PAC in February of 2017. During the period of his dual consultancy, Domestic Airline Consultant reported to PAC Executive 1.
Although Domestic Airline Consultant's agreement with Domestic Airline permitted him to undertake other consultant positions so long as they were not with other airlines, that agreement prohibited him from disclosing confidential information. Despite this prohibition, while Domestic Airline Consultant worked as a consultant for both PAC and Domestic Airline, he provided non-public, inside, or otherwise sensitive information to PAC Executive 1 and others at PAC, including forwarding internal communications among Domestic Airline's employees about PAC, information about Domestic Airline's negotiations with a PAC competitor, and pricing information of a PAC competitor. Domestic Airline Consultant typically marked communications in which he provided such information with phrases such as "CONFIDENTIAL," "DO NOT FORWARD," or similar statements suggesting the information was confidential or otherwise sensitive.
Beyond the provision of such inside or otherwise non-public information, Domestic Airline Consultant performed little additional work for PAC. Under the terms of his consultancy agreement with Domestic Airline, Domestic Airline Consultant was responsible for managing the relationship with PAC, including liaising with the engineering and marketing departments of both parties during the execution of IFE and GCS contracts. In addition, Domestic Airline Consultant served on Domestic Airline's team that evaluated bids submitted by PAC and other vendors for contracts to be awarded by Domestic Airline. In particular, during the dual consultancy period, Domestic Airline Consultant served on two bid review teams for IFE contracts that Domestic Airline ultimately awarded to PAC. As such, although Domestic Airline Consultant was not the ultimate decision maker within Domestic Airline on awarding contracts, he had input into Domestic Airline's decision-making process to award business to PAC.
Between October 2007 and December 2013, PAC paid Domestic Airline Consultant a total of $825,000 in consultancy payments through Service Provider, which were classified as "consultant payments" on PAC's general ledger, despite the fact that these payments were made in the absence of effective internal accounting controls, including PAC's failure to obtain sufficient documentation to substantiate the nature and appropriate value of the "consulting services" provided by Domestic Airline Consultant. The payments made to Domestic Airline Consultant through Service Provider were ultimately designated as "selling and general administrative expenses" on Panasonic's books, records, and accounts.
Between April 2008 and March 2013, PAC earned $22,693,571 in profits attributable to business from Domestic Airline on three different programs for which Domestic Airline Consultant had some involvement or influence, including, for example, by serving as a member of Domestic Airline's bid review committee."
Under the heading, "Concealment of the Use of Sales Agents that Did Not Meet PAC's Diligence Requirements," the information alleges in pertinent part:
"Beginning in at least 1999 and continuing to at least 2016, PAC utilized the services of several third-party sales agents in its China and Asia regions (which PAC designated as separate sales regions between 2008 and 2013) to obtain and manage contracts with state-owned airlines. The commissions PAC paid to such sales agents typically ranged from six to ten percent.
PAC failed to put in place adequate controls over its use of sales agents in China and Asia and PAC employees disregarded red flags associated with these sales agents. For example, some of the sales agents were recommended by the state-owned airlines themselves, some sales agents were registered outside of the jurisdiction where they purportedly provided services, and other sales agents were paid outside of the territory where they purportedly provided services. In addition, historically, PAC performed only limited, informal due diligence before retaining third-party sales agents.
In total, between 2008 and April 22, 2013, financial records indicate that PAC Sales Agent 2 received at least $7,182,972 from PAC for the benefit of thirteen different sub-agents, including PAC Sales Agent 3. These payments were improperly booked as commission payments to PAC Sales Agent 2, when in fact they were payments to other sales agents who were otherwise ineligible to work with PAC. PAC then caused Panasonic likewise to falsify its books and records in connection with these payments. PAC terminated its relationship with PAC Sales Agent 2 in March of 2015."
Under the heading "Causing Panasonic to Falsify Its Books, Records, and Accounts," the information alleges:
"During the relevant time period, PAC caused Panasonic to falsify its books, records, and accounts in connection with the improper retention of consultants through the Office of the President Budget, the payment of such consultants through Service Provider, and the concealment of the continued use of certain sales agents in China and Asia. Specifically, as noted above, the $875,000 in consulting payments made to Foreign Official through Service Provider were falsely classified as "consultant payments" on PAC's general ledger and ultimately as "selling and general administrative expenses" on Panasonic's books, records, and accounts. In addition, the $7,182,972 in payments PAC paid to PAC Sales Agent 2 for the benefit of at least thirteen different sub-agents were improperly booked by PAC as commission payments to PAC Sales Agent 2, when in fact they were payments to other sales agents who were otherwise ineligible to work with PAC. PAC then caused these payments to likewise be falsely recorded in Panasonic's books, records, and accounts.
Furthermore, as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Panasonic, PAC was required to provide representations and certifications to Panasonic about PAC's financials and financial controls. Specifically, PAC was required to provide certifications of PAC's financial statements for Sarbanes-Oxley consolidation purposes (the "subcertifications") at the end of each fiscal year. In relevant part, the subcertifications required PAC Executive 1 to certify that "no deficiencies have been identified and the internal control[s] over financial reporting have effectively functioned in [the] company." For each of the fiscal years ending on March 31st between 2010 and 2013, PAC Executive 1 signed the subcertifications but failed to report PAC's improper retention of Foreign Official and Domestic Airline Consultant and the payments to those consultants made through Service Provider, despite PAC Executive 1's knowledge of PAC's relationship with, and payments to, Foreign Official and Domestic Airline Consultant in the absence of such internal controls.
In each of the fiscal years ending on March 31st between 2010 and 2012, PAC Executive 2 signed the subcertifications on behalf of his department despite (a) PAC Executive 2's knowledge of PAC's consulting relationship with Foreign Official; (b) PAC Executive 2's receipt of the Selected Vendor Audit Report in 2010, which made him aware of PAC's improper retention of consultants through the Office of the President Budget, including Foreign Official, and the payments to those consultants made through Service Provider; and (c) PAC Executive 2's receipt of an email highlighting the excessive number of airlines represented by PAC Sales Agent 2.
Finally, for each of the fiscal years ending on March 31st in 2011 and 2012, PAC Executive 3 signed the subcertifications on behalf of PAC's finance department, and, similarly, for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2013, PAC Executive 4 signed the subcertification on behalf of PAC's finance department. Both PAC Executive 3 and PAC Executive 4 signed these subcertifications despite PAC Executive 3's receipt of the Selected Vendor Audit Report in 2010 and 2011 and PAC Executive 4's receipt of the Selected Vendor Audit Report in 2012, which made them both aware of PAC's improper retention of consultants through the Office of the President Budget, including Foreign Official, and the payments to those consultants made through Service Provider."
Based on the above, the information charges PAC with knowingly and willfully causing "Panasonic to falsify its books, records, and accounts and caused Panasonic to not, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect its transactions and dispositions." Specifically:
"(i) knowingly providing false or incomplete representations and certifications to Panasonic about PAC's financials and financial controls; and (ii) falsifying records relating to the retention of consultants through the Office of the President Budget, the payment of such consultants through Service Provider, and the continued use of certain sales agents in China and Asia."
Deferred Prosecution Agreement
The above charge against PAC was resolved through a three-year DPA. The DPA lists the following "relevant considerations."
a. The Company did not receive voluntary disclosure credit because the Company's disclosures occurred only after the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") requested documents from Panasonic related to possible violations of anti-corruption laws and several years after the Company and Panasonic first became aware of the allegations of bribery through a whistleblower complaint and civil lawsuit, which the Company took steps to investigate internally but chose not to voluntarily report to the relevant authorities;
b. The Company received credit for its cooperation with the Fraud Section's investigation, including conducting a thorough internal investigation; making factual presentations to the Fraud Section; providing facts learned during witness interviews conducted by the Company; voluntarily making U.S. and foreign employees available for interviews in the United States with the Fraud Section and the SEC; in one instance, proactively alerting the Fraud Section to material information relevant to the investigation; collecting, analyzing, and organizing voluminous evidence from multiple jurisdictions; and disclosing to the Fraud Section conduct in the Middle East of which the Fraud Section was previously unaware.
c. By the conclusion of the investigation, the Company provided to the Fraud Section all relevant facts known to it, including information about the individuals involved in the conduct described in the Statement of Facts … and conduct disclosed to the Fraud Section prior to the Agreement;
d. The Company engaged in significant, although in some respects untimely, remedial measures, including causing several senior executives who were either involved in or aware of the misconduct to be separated from the Company;
e. The Company has enhanced and has committed to continuing to enhance its compliance program and internal controls, including ensuring that its compliance program satisfies the minimum elements set forth in Attachment C to this Agreement (Corporate Compliance Program), but to date has not fully implemented or tested its enhanced compliance program, and thus the imposition of an independent compliance monitor for a term of two years … is necessary to prevent the reoccurrence of misconduct;
f. The nature and seriousness of the offense conduct, including knowing and willful falsification of books and records that lasted for at least six years and spanned multiple countries, and participation in the scheme by high-level executives of the Company;
g. The Company has no prior criminal history;
h. The Company has agreed to continue to cooperate with the Fraud Section in any ongoing investigation of the conduct of the Company, its parent company or its affiliates, or any of its present or former officers, directors, employees, agents, business partners, distributors, and consultants relating to violations of the FCPA;
i. Panasonic has agreed to disgorge $126,900,000 in profits and $16,299,018.93 in prejudgment interest to the SEC in connection with overlapping conduct;
j. Accordingly, after considering (a) through (i) above, the Fraud Section has determined that a Deferred Prosecution Agreement, an aggregate discount of 20% off of the bottom of the otherwise-applicable U.S. Sentencing Guidelines fine range, and the imposition of a two-year independent compliance monitor is sufficient but not greater than necessary to achieve the purposes described in 18 U.S.C. § 3553."
The DPA sets forth in advisory guidelines range of approximately $172 million – $344 million and states that a monetary penalty in the amount of $137.4 million "is appropriate given the facts and circumstances of this case, including the Relevant Considerations …".
In this release, Acting Assistant Attorney General John Cronan stated:
"When Panasonic Avionics Corporation caused its publicly-traded parent company to falsify its books and records, it distorted the information available to legitimate investors. The Criminal Division will take all appropriate action to ensure that the investing public is able to trust the accuracy of the financial statements of companies that avail themselves of American securities exchanges."
The SEC action was based on the same core conduct alleged in the DOJ action. This administrative order states in summary fashion:
"This matter concerns violations of the anti-bribery, anti-fraud, books and records, and internal accounting controls provisions of the federal securities laws by Panasonic, a global electronics corporation headquartered in Osaka, Japan.
The anti-bribery violation is the result of a 2007 bribery scheme involving senior management of one of Panasonic's U.S. subsidiaries, Panasonic Avionics Corporation ("PAC"), whereby a lucrative consulting position was provided to a government official ("Government Official") who assisted PAC in obtaining and retaining business from a state-owned airline ("Government Airline"). While PAC was negotiating two agreements valued at over $700 million with the Government Airline, PAC offered the Government Official a $200,000 a year postretirement consulting position in order to induce him to assist PAC. Ultimately, PAC retained the Government Official and paid approximately $875,000 for his purported consulting position, which required little to no work. The payments to the Government Official were made through a third-party vendor that provided unrelated services to PAC. In addition, the engagement of the Government Official violated Panasonic's policies and procedures, and the payments were not accurately reflected in its books and records.
The anti-fraud violation is a result of Panasonic materially overstating its pre-tax income by at least $38.5 million or 9%, and net income by at least $22.4 million or 16%, for the quarter ending June 30, 2012. PAC backdated an agreement with the Government Airline and provided misleading information about the agreement to PAC's auditor in order to include the revenue in that quarter. Thereafter, Panasonic knowingly and intentionally prematurely recognized this revenue in violation of generally accepted accounting principles.
In addition, Panasonic lacked appropriate internal accounting controls with respect to the use of consultants and sales agents at PAC. PAC paid over $1.76 million to purported consultants, including the Government Official, who provided few if any legitimate consulting services. As with the payments to the Government Official, these payments were made through a third-party vendor and Panasonic's books and records did not accurately reflect the true nature of the payments. Additionally, because certain sales agents could not meet PAC's internal due diligence requirements, PAC devised a scheme to retain those sales agents in the Asia, and China regions by paying them through a separate sales agent."
The SEC's order adds the following regarding certain third parties. For instance, the SEC finds that a Sales Rep "lacked an education or background in avionics" and additionally that the company "knew that the Sales Rep employed his sons to assist him, even though they had no relevant qualifications to sell [certain products]." It is also worth noting that the SEC found that the Sales Rep "gave cash and luxury items valued at more than $60,000" to the PAC executive to whom he reported.
Under the heading "Retention of Sales Agents," the order states:
"PAC's practice of using sales agents, who solicited business for PAC from stateowned airlines and other customers, varied depending upon the sales region. For example, in Europe, Oceania, and the United States, PAC did not use sales agents. By contrast, in its Middle East, Asia, and China sales regions, PAC routinely engaged sales agents to obtain business from state-owned airlines and other customers and typically paid them between six and ten percent of the net contract amount. Between 2007 and 2017, PAC paid its sales agents in the Middle East, Asia, and China sales regions, including the Sales Rep, over $275 million.
By 2004, PAC had established regional field offices in the Middle East, Asia, and China. Moreover, by 2008 PAC's primary regional office in Asia was staffed with numerous marketing and sales personnel versed and trained in PAC's products, as well as field engineers. Nonetheless, PAC continued to use sales agents in connection with state-owned airlines and other customers in this region.
Prospective sales agents would contact PAC sales and marketing employees in the Asia and China regions and offer their services in connection with requests for proposals issued by airlines for IFE products. Vetting of the sales agents typically consisted of PAC having the agent arrange a phone call or meeting between PAC and high level executives or procurement staff of a potential customer. In addition, PAC told at least one agent that he was expected to obtain confidential, non-public bids of PAC's competitors. This sales agent used sales commissions received from PAC to provide gifts, entertainment, and hospitality to government officials and their families as part of his efforts on behalf of PAC.
While PAC historically conducted no meaningful due diligence on its sales agents, beginning in at least 1996, PAC started including audit rights in its contracts with sales agents. However, PAC did not exercise its audit rights in order to avoid upsetting relationships with the agents. In early 2007, PAC began to put in place due diligence procedures for screening sales agents, including those agents with established relationships with PAC. For sales agents that could not pass the new procedures, PAC made arrangements for the sales agents to enter into subagreements with a Malaysia-based sales agent. That agent ultimately served as a stand-in for at least thirteen sales agents, some of which refused or failed the vetting process. In this way, PAC could continue to use sales agents who did not pass the screening requirements by concealing their use and payment through the Malaysia-based sales agent. PAC paid a one or two percent fee to the Malaysian representative who acted as the conduit for payments to the other agents, despite the fact that PAC policies explicitly prohibited the use of unapproved sales agents. PAC falsely recorded the payments to the sub-agents in its books and records as legitimate payments to the Malaysia based sales agent.
Beginning in February 2009, PAC instituted a formal process to hire sales agents. The new procedure set out a number of different requirements, including determining the need for the agent, internal due diligence documentation, preliminary background checks, interviews, and analysis of any red flags, before requesting that the prospective sales agent undergo a third-party due diligence vetting process. In addition, PAC regional sales and marketing staff would submit a "Sales Representative Agreement Request" for review by PAC's Legal Affairs Department. Finally, all requests were to be routed to PAC's Internal Review Committee (the "IRC"), staffed by PAC executives, including PAC Executive One and another senior executive.
Notwithstanding the implementation of these procedures, the IRC never rejected a request for use of a sales agent. Prior to voting to approve sales agent contracts, the IRC typically received a single-page form providing cursory information regarding the agent and contract. The due diligence information and red flags identified in the third-party reports were not communicated to the IRC, and the IRC never questioned the need for the extensive use of sales agents or requested to review due diligence reports. Similarly, the IRC did not question the decrease in the number of agents after third-party due diligence requirements were instituted, or the fact that a little-known Malaysian company had the capacity to perform work for approximately fifty programs with nearly twenty airlines. Between 2008 and 2015, PAC paid over $10 million to the Malaysian sales agent for the benefit of at least thirteen different unapproved sub-agents. The IRC approved all of the contracts with the Malaysian agent after February 2009.
Moreover, PAC's compliance personnel lacked appropriate qualifications and training, and as a result failed to act on numerous red flags in connection with the retention of sales agents. For example, they raised no questions or concerns about the retention of sales agents that internal forms clearly disclosed were hired after "being recommended by airline." Nearly all of the airlines internally described as recommending these sales agents were state-owned airlines in the Asia and China Regions.
PAC's compliance personnel failed to act on other red flags, including those that were specifically identified in PAC's own policies and procedures such as: (a) payment of large commissions to sales agents in relation to services rendered; (b) payments to bank accounts in countries other than where services were being provided; (c) the retention of sales agents recommended by state-owned airlines; and (d) lack of adequate educational, business, and technical qualifications. Examples of ignored red flags include payments of approximately $4 million to a sales agent whose primary work experience was as a Hong Kong department store clerk, and nearly $10 million to an agent who had served as the head of an Asian equestrian league, but had no relevant avionics experience.
Similarly, after a third-party vetting service discovered that one sales agent had forged references, and another was flagged as potentially being a "foreign official" under the FCPA, they were nevertheless engaged by PAC and simply paid as sub-agents through the Malaysian agent.
As a result, Panasonic failed to devise and maintain a sufficient system of internal accounting controls in connection with the retention of sales agents and failed to accurately record the payments to the sales agents on its books and records."
Based on the above, the SEC found that Panasonic violated the FCPA's anti-bribery, books and records, and internal controls provisions. In addition, based on the underlying conduct that SEC also found that Panasonic fraudulently reported revenue and found violations of Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 as well as other reporting violations.
The order requires Panasonic to pay approximately $143.2 million ($126.0 million in disgorgement and $16.3 million in prejudgment interest).
Under the heading "Remedial Efforts," the order states:
"In determining to accept the Offer, the Commission considered remedial efforts undertaken by [Panasonic] and cooperation afforded the Commission staff in the later stages of the staff's investigation. [Panasonic] has replaced the senior PAC executives involved in the violations, established an Office of Compliance and Ethics led by a new Chief Compliance Officer, implemented new compliance and accounting procedures, and enhanced internal accounting controls to prevent and detect the type of misconduct described in the Order."
In this release, Antonia Chion (Associate Director of the SEC's Enforcement Division) stated:
"Investors rightfully expect that the companies they invest in will not engage in bribery or fraud. Issuers must implement effective controls for the selection and engagement of consultants and agents to ensure compliance with anti-bribery statutes."
Charles Cain (Chief of the SEC's FCPA Unit) stated:
"Issuers need to ensure that their rules and controls address the specific bribery and corruption risks they face when operating in global markets with customers that are state-owned entities. It is not enough for a company merely to set up policies and procedures that are not enforced or are easily circumvented by employees."
In this release, Hideo Nakano (CEO of Panasonic Avionics) stated:
"We are pleased to have resolved these investigations; we have taken extensive steps over the past few years to strengthen Panasonic Avionics' compliance programs and internal controls, and we welcome an independent compliance monitor to assess our progress.
Remedial actions taken include:
• Installing a new executive management team, including a new Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Compliance Officer
• Strengthening internal financial controls
• Developing an enhanced compliance program under the leadership of the new Chief Compliance Officer
• Hiring a global team of compliance, finance and audit experts
• Substantially reducing, and enhancing the controls around, the use of third-party agents and consultants
"This is an ongoing effort and the company will continue to strengthen its compliance programs and internal controls. With these investigations behind us, we are confident that Panasonic Avionics is well-positioned for long-term success under our new management team."
Ronald Machen, Matthew Jones, Kimberly Parker and Erin Sloane (Wilmer Cutler) represented PAC.
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text:
Q: How to keep datarow data?  DataRow temptDataRow = dtable.NewRow();
 temptDataRow = dtable.Rows[selectSeq];
 temptDataRow.AcceptChanges();
 dtable.Rows[selectSeq].Delete();
 dtable.AcceptChanges();

When you delete a row of a datatable referenced by datarow data, it is blown. Is there a way to prevent this?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


H.B.M. Steamer "Vixen" - manned yards and fired a salute of 9 guns.
Store Ship "Relief" - sent the spare Fore topsail yard to the Store Ship "Relief"
Middle part calm and latter part wind moderate and passing clouds.
4-8 light airs from Nd and Ed and ?
steamer "Uraguay" - boarded the Montevideo steamer "Uraguay"
Buenos Ayrean steamer of war "Correo" - got underway and anchored near the Steamer "Argentina"


text:
Africa-America Institute names new President
Image By AAI/ www.chocolatephotographynyc.com
AAI Past President and CEO Mora McLean(right) and Amini Kajunju
The Africa-America Institute has announced the appointment of Amini Kajunju to the position of President and CEO of the New York-based international organization, which is dedicated to advancing education and professional training for Africans, and promoting engagement between Africa and America through education, training and dialogue.
Kajunju, a native of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is the first African ever to serve at the helm of the oldest nonprofit organization of its kind in the United States.
As President and CEO, Kajunju will lead in transforming the nearly 60-year-old education and policy organization into an innovative, vital hub of African talent, a convening forum for leading thought leaders and scholars on issues related to Africa, and a repository of extensive history, research and information on the continent. She succeeds Mora McLean, who stepped down after 16 years of outstanding leadership.
Kajunju will be responsible for driving a new strategic vision and direction for AAI's programming and strengthening its engagement with 23,000 AAI alumni and partners in Africa and the United States. Prominent AAI alumni include Wangari Maathai, the late Kenyan environmental and women's rights activist and Nobel Laureate; Namibia's Prime Minister H.E. Nahas Angula; and President Alassane Ouattara of Cote D'Ivoire.
With 20 years of experience in entrepreneurial and economic development, Kajunju served most recently as CEO of Workshop in Business Opportunities (WIBO), a New York-based nonprofit small business development service provider servingNew York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
"Amini Kajunju is an entrepreneurial and tech-savvy leader who brings to AAI a proven record of working with nonprofit organizations to ignite innovation and achieve measurable results," said Kofi Appenteng, Chairman of AAI's Board of Trustees. "Her energy, vision, and deep experience will position AAI to be a leader in investing in African professionals to increase the continent's global competitiveness and economic success. The Board believes she is the right leader at the right time."
Since its founding in 1953, AAI has historically enabled Africans to earn advanced academic degrees and receive professional and leadership training within and outside Africa. "AAI has a rich history and a solid record of accomplishment that I seek to build on," said Kajunju. "I'm honored to serve as AAI's President and CEO and look forward to implementing a new vision to take the organization to a new level."

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Greece Caves-In to More Austerity to Secure IMF Loans. Are Tsipras' Days in Office Numbered?
Greek MPs approved a multi-bill containing a range of austerity measures, including another 1.8 billion euros in tax hikes and the framework for a vast new privatization fund, paving the way for the Eurogroup to release more loans.
On Sunday Greek MPs approved a multi-bill containing a wide range of measures, including 1.8 billion euros in tax hikes and the framework for a new privatisation fund. The brutal new austerity measures will almost certainly unlock more Eurogroup loans to Athens, but it will come at a very heavy price to Greek sovereignty and dignity.
The WSJ explains the bill further in a piece entitled, Greece Set for Austerity Vote to Secure Bailout Cash.
The bill includes the last portion of an austerity package worth €5.4 billion ($6.06 billion), or 3% of the country's gross domestic product, which Greece has agreed on with its international creditors to implement by 2018 in exchange for fresh bailout funds under the terms of its third bailout deal.
The IMF has said it would only sign up to the Greek bailout if Germany agrees to debt relief. But German officials are seeking to delay any debt restructuring until the end of the current Greek bailout program in 2018, so that Germany's parliament, the Bundestag, would pass such measures only after Germany's 2017 elections.
To meet its targets, Athens was asked to set up a "contingency mechanism" of additional austerity measures worth some 2% of GDP.
The measures being voted on Sunday include new taxes on fuel, tobacco, alcohol, Internet, pay TV, hotel stays, cars, changes in property tax, as well as a rise in the basic value-added tax rate, applied to most goods and services, from 23% to 24%.
The Greek parliament is also expected to vote on the fiscal brake mechanism that would automatically cut state spending if Greece misses its budget targets.
How much the next bailout tranche would be is still to be determined, but European Union officials indicate it could be €10 billion.
Eurozone finance ministers will meet in Brussels today to decide whether Greece has done enough to complete the first review of its latest bailout program.
If given the green light, Athens will receive a minimum of 5.7 billion euros in bailout funds. Questions still remains regarding whether the eurozone creditors and the IMF will find common ground on how to reduce Greece's debt or if this will be another clumsy stumbling block in what has become a never ending Greek tragedy.
Meanwhile in Athens' parliament, Syriza and its coalition partners we embroiled in two days of debate with opposition parties.
Tsipras rejected the idea that the government will not last much longer after New Democracy MP Dimitris Stamatis suggested that there would be snap elections in spring next year. The prime minister insisted that the coalition will see out its full four-year term and that elections would take place in September 2019.
The prime minister criticized the opposition for not supporting the measures in the multi-bill despite earlier suggestions that New Democracy, at least, would vote for the provisions regarding the privatization fund and the sale of NPLs.
"What we are voting on is completely within the framework of the [bailout] deal we agreed [with Greece's lenders] last August," said Tsipras.
Earlier, Mitsotakis had accused the government of ceding Greece's sovereignty by giving the country's creditors a key say in the privatizations that will take place, not setting a limit on the sales and giving the new fund a lifespan of 99 years.
"Today is a day of shame for the Greek Parliament," said the conservative leader in relation to the fund.
Mitsotakis also outlined his proposal for the economy, saying he would ask the institutions to lower the mid-term fiscal target to 2 percent of gross domestic product and would aim to fuel business activity through a series of tax hikes that would create growth of 4 percent of GDP.
As things are progressing it seems highly unlikely that Tsipras will last much longer. Greece remains in an economic depression with a few blips of growth that go unnoticed by a populations plagued with record 26% unemployment rates and living conditions unbecoming of a "European" member state.
Hiking taxes in a depression is one of the stupidest things one can do, but Greece is set for another vote to do just that.
Prime minister Alexis Tsipras is once again prepared to kiss German Chancellor Angela Merkel's behind, and his party will likely go along for the ride.
The wildcard IMF has yet to chime in on the economic stupidity of this hike.
On May 14, I reported Greece "Demands" Debt Relief, Owes Troika €11+ Billion by July.
€10 billion would be a lot of money, if the money went to Greece. But virtually none of it will go to Greece.
Somehow I expect the next tranche to be a "greater than expected" €11 billion. Perhaps €10 billion will suffice if Greece has €1 billion of its own to pony up.
Payments to the Troika stretch all the way to 2059, while assuming Greece can maintain a primary account surplus of 3.5% the entire way.
The IMF says this is impossible, while proposing a surplus of 1.5%, also impossible.
The IMF wants debt relief now, but Germany wants the IMF to hold off until Merkel wins reelection.
Meanwhile, the Greek depression resumes.


text:
Vacuuming Carbon Dioxide from the Sky
November 18, 2021 November 16, 2021 sharongaiettophotographyLeave a comment
Day 322 – A Swiss company, Climeworks, has designed a way to remove the carbon dioxide out of the air. The direct air capture devices capture the carbon dioxide which can then be turned into useful materials. The first plant was opened in Switzerland in 2017. They just opened their fifteenth plant this summer in Iceland.
The removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is helping the environment in a few ways. First, by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, it is decreasing greenhouse gases which contributes to global warming. Second, the captured carbon can be used for fuels and plastic. This prevents the need for more fossil carbon dioxide.
Another material produced from the captured carbon dioxide is cement.
"Materials made from atmospheric carbon could be transformative for the construction and built environment sector, which together are responsible for an estimated 40 per cent of global emissions." – Dezeen.com
Since buildings stand for a long time, long term carbon storage is possible.
"Climeworks is not proposing to help decarbonize the global economy; instead, it is proposing to help defossilize it. This means leaving remaining fossil reserves in the ground to prevent new carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere." – Dezeen.com
It has become very clear that we can not continue at the rate we are going when it comes to carbon emissions. Something needs to happen and it needs to happen now. Waiting another 30 years for countries to commit to zero carbon emissions is 30 years too long. Climeworks hasn't come up with a solution to global warming, but they have found a key component in fighting the battle against a warming planet.
You can become a Climate Pioneer be helping remove carbon dioxide from the air. Start making your impact today!
Tomorrow, keeping the toilet clean.
Conserve, Education, Environment, Reduce, Reusecarbon dioxide, carbon emissions, Climeworks, Dezeen, direct air capture, Global Warming, greenhouse gases, Iceland, Orca, reducing carbon emissions, removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, repurposing carbon, Switzerland
Electric Composters: Are they worth it?
October 10, 2021 October 9, 2021 sharongaiettophotographyLeave a comment
Day 283 – You might be thinking, yet another post about composting? However, I can not express enough how important composting is for the environment. The food that ends up in the landfill is a major contributor to methane gas, which is a greenhouse gas. Landfills are the third-largest source of methane emissions in the U.S., according to the EPA. So, making sure we divert food waste from the landfill is key to reducing greenhouse gases.
So, when I started seeing advertisements about electric composters, I was curious if they really worked. Earth911 was kind enough to share some information about various electric composters and to share the pros and cons.
Even though there were a few pros on purchasing an electric composter, the bottom line is that we do not need yet another electric appliance. Just another expensive piece of machinery that generates carbon emissions when built and has no where to go, except the landfill, when it stops working. Yet another contributor to the e-waste problem.
Earth911 does suggest that if an electric composter is the one option you're willing to try then make sure you're buying it from a responsible company.
"If you're interested in purchasing an electric composter, look for brands that take a full product lifecycle approach to make their product as sustainable as possible. That would mean the company has taken steps to reduce the manufacturing emissions and raw materials consumption on the front end, and it has a sustainable solution for responsibly disposing of or recycling the product at the end of its life." – Earth911
Tomorrow, detergent pods and the plastic problem.
Composting, Education, Environment, Reusecarbon emissions, Composting, e-waste, Earth911, electric appliance, electric composters, greenhouse gases, methane gas
Zero Emissions Day
September 21, 2021 September 13, 2021 sharongaiettophotographyLeave a comment
Day 264 – The worldwide movement known as Zero Emissions Day, or ZeDay, began on September 21st, 2008, and aims to encourage the use of renewable energy sources to "give the planet a day off" from emissions.
Here are some ways you can celebrate the day:
Consider riding your bike or car pooling today.
Consider utilizing solar or battery (rechargeable) operated devices.
Consider making meals that can be made with minimal energy or no energy at all, like a salad.
Does reducing emissions really make an impact?
The Environmental Protection Agency has developed a Greenhouse Gases Equivalencies Calculator which shows the equivalencies for energy-related emissions reductions so each individual can see their impact as it relates to their lifestyle.
Even though Zero Emissions Day is celebrated only once a year, it is definitely something we need to work towards to achieve on a daily basis. The only way we will be able to combat global warming is to reduce the green house gasses being emitted into the atmosphere. Achieving zero emissions will be a game changer.
To read about 10 ways to help your home achieve net zero emissions click HERE.
Tomorrow, cutting out plastic cutlery.
Conserve, Education, Environment, Health, Reduce10 ways to help your home achieve zero emissions, greenhouse gases, Greenhouse Gases Equivalencies Calculator, ways to achieve zero emissions, ZeDay, zero emissions, Zero Emissions Day
Fossil Fools Day
April 1, 2021 April 1, 2021 sharongaiettophotographyLeave a comment
Image borrowed from National Geographic
Day 91 – It is no joke that the use of fossil fuels is not good for the planet. However, we rely on them everyday. The gas in our cars, the flame on our stoves and the electricity needed to power our lights are just a few ways we have become dependent on fossil fuels . It is such an efficient source of energy and even its byproducts are used to produce plastic, which can be found in pretty much everything. Unfortunately, the use of fossil fuels is killing our planet. The release of fossil fuels pollutes the air (among other things) and increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere which contributes to greenhouse gases. Like an actual greenhouse that traps heat to keep plants and other vegetation nice and warm during the cooler months, greenhouse gases are trapped in our atmosphere and heats up the planet. The more greenhouse gases, the more heat that is produced. This increase in temperature is causing global warming.
So, what can be done? What is the answer to this global problem?
Well, the answer is renewable energy sources. There is much debate when it comes to fossil fuels vs. renewable energy. For me, it seems like a no brainer. Choose the energy sources that will stop destroying the planet.
Biomass – wood waste, solid waste, biodiesel, etc.
Imagine a world, where we are able to power our homes with the waste we produce. It sounds like science fiction but it's already happening at waste management facilities. This type of resource is only viable if the emissions given off by burning trash are kept from entering the atmosphere. Unfortunately, many facilities are not equipped and end up polluting the air.
In 2017, a press release from the Argonne National Laboratory discusses a paper written in the Journal of Cleaner Production, which helps assess the environmental benefits of various waste-to-energy production pathways while avoiding emissions of methane and other harmful air pollutants. The paper was written by Uisung Lee of the Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory. In his paper, he writes,
"By using waste to produce energy, we can avoid emissions from landfills and potentially reduce the need for additional landfills across the country."
"Our study shows that using what would otherwise become landfill waste to produce fuel typically generates less greenhouse gases than simply letting the waste decompose."
The work has already started to move our country and the world to renewable resources. So, what can we do to help the cause?
Well, I don't know about you, but I'm in no position to purchase an electric car at the moment, or invest in a wind turbine. The solar panels, on the other hand, are something to look into. What I can do, is support renewable energy whenever and wherever it makes sense to do so. Realizing that this is the direction we all need to move to ensure a healthier planet is the first step. Convincing an oil loving country that we need other options is a Herculean challenge, but as consumers, we have more power than we think.
Tomorrow, voting with our purchases.
Conserve, Education, Environment, ReduceArgonne National Laboratory, fossil fuel, Fossil Fuel Day, Global Warming, greenhouse gases, Journal of Cleaner Production, renewable energy sources, waste to energy
Carbon Footprint: Tools to calculate your impact
March 9, 2021 sharongaiettophotographyLeave a comment
Day 68 – A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases (including carbon dioxide and methane) that are generated by our actions.
"The average carbon footprint for a person in the United States is 16 tons, one of the highest rates in the world. Globally, the average is closer to 4 tons. To have the best chance of avoiding a 2℃ rise in global temperatures, the average global carbon footprint per year needs to drop under 2 tons by 2050." – The Nature Conservancy
Image borrowed from EchoTalk.org
By using a Carbon Footprint Calculator we can start figuring out how much greenhouse gas emissions we produce through our daily activities. Once we figure out where we are with our production of greenhouse gases, we can better understand how to reduce those emissions.
So what goes into calculating your carbon footprint? Information like how much electricity and natural gas your home uses in a year. What kind of car do you drive? Do you take public transportation? Even what kind of food and beverage you consume and the clothes you wear can affect your carbon footprint.
Earth911 recommends various Carbon Footprint Calculators. If you choose to use one, be sure to use the same one throughout your calculations. Jumping around from calculator to calculator will not be beneficial.
Carbon Footprint – This calculator is described as "extremely thorough", which makes me a little apprehensive. It also uses British currency and measurements. So, conversions will be needed. I would rather not do extra math if I don't have to.
World Wildlife Calculator – This is offered by the British division of the WWF. So, I'm guessing extra calculations would be needed to convert to U.S. currency and measurements. They do offer advice on reducing your carbon footprint available on their site.
CoolClimate Network – Created by the University of California Berkley, this calculator illustrates the breakdown of emissions across individual categories of activity.
Other sites mentioned:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Carbon Footprint Calculator
TerraPass Carbon Calculator
The Nature Conservancy Carbon Calculator
I'm going to start using the The Nature Conservancy Carbon Calculator. I've chosen this calculator because I'm familiar with this organization. I really don't know any specifics about the calculator, but will definitely update everyone on how it's going. Please be sure to share how your carbon footprint calculator experience is going, too, if you choose to do it. I would love to know what kind of changes you have made to reduce your carbon footprint.
Tomorrow, be sure to pack your lunch.
Conserve, Education, Environment, Reducecarbon emissions, carbon footprint, carbon footprint calculator, CarbonFootprint.com, CoolClimate Network, Earth911, EPA, greenhouse gases, reduce carbon emissions, TerraPass Carbon Calculator, The Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Calculator


Ezekiel was a young priest taken captive and carried off to Babylon where he served as a prophet among the exiles by the Chebar River (branch of the Euphrates) at the time that Daniel lived in the court of King Nebuchadnezzar and Jeremiah remained among the Jews in Jerusalem.
"...the word of the Lord came directly to Ezekiel the priest...in the land of the Chaldeans by the Chebar Canal. And the Lord's hand was upon him there...He said to me: "Son of man, I am sending you to...the rebellious nations who have rebelled against Me to this day...you must say to them: This is what the Lord God says. Whether they listen or refuse (to listen)...they will know that a prophet has been among them...If I say to the wicked person: You will surely die, but you do not warn him..that wicked person will die for his iniquity. Yet I will hold you responsible for his blood." Ez. 1:3; 2:3-5; 3:18.
Years ago, a new neighbor volunteered to help me teach 4th graders in Vacation Bible School. My new friend set up crafts while I told the daily Bible story and gave a simple presentation of the gospel. Weeks later, I asked her if she had a relationship with Jesus to which she replied, "Yes, when you told the Bible story in VBS, I trusted in Jesus and He came into my life."


Oregon delivers an incredibly diverse landscape of quaint farms and huge woodlands, massive mountains and endless beaches. Portland is loved the world over for its avant garde culture and rebellious streak, a state of great coffee shops, independent boutiques, world-class restaurants and many microbreweries. The Willamette Valley is a fine producer of red wines and dramatic Mount Hood is perfect for hiking and skiing. What's not to like?
Love the dramatic roar of fast, white water? Silver Falls Park is your destination.
D River in Lincoln City is the world's shortest river at just 121 feet long. Luckily there's a lot more to do here than admire a very short stretch of very dull water! Here are three of the best.
You can't visit Oregon without spending time in Portland. Just like Portland in Dorset, UK, it's town slogan is 'Keep Portland Weird'... and it is wonderfully weird: eccentric, colourful and rebellious.
There's no sales tax here. Whatever you buy, including booze, the price on the label is the price you pay. Only four other US states can say the same thing. Oregon's famous Dungeness crab season starts a week or so after Thanksgiving, and they're delicious. They're usually served simply with fresh lemon and clarified butter, a traditional Oregon dish.
Take in all three of these unique towns for an immersive Oregon experience, then head for the glorious countryside, beaches, mountains and forests for the time of your life, surrounded by natural splendour.
Oregon is home to a quarter of the nation's llamas. It also contains more ghost towns than any other state, more than sixty including a host of ghostly mining towns.
The epic-sized Willamette National Forest sits on the western slopes of the Cascade Mountains, just shy of 1.7 million acres of mind-blowing natural scenery studded with volcanoes, mountains and rivers. At the opposite end of the attractions scale, the windowless Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art in Eugene protects a feast of precious Asian, US and European art. You'll find the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area near Florence, a vast stretch of Pacific sand dunes running forty miles to Coos Bay. The Sand Master Park is there, where sandboarders do their thing, and north of Florence there's yet another of the Oregon coast's many historic lighthouses. It's home to the planet's biggest cheese factory. The Oregon Caves are carved out of solid marble. And Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the nation.
Head north for Hell's Canyon, the deepest in the US and mostly inaccessible unless your a hardy, experienced outdoor type. Otherwise get a flavour of it by driving the Hell's Canyon National Scenic Byway. It's like our own lovely coastal trail in Cornwall... but on steroids. The Oregon Coast Trail is a 382 mile hiking route through gorgeous ocean and land-side scenery, and you can pick it up at entry points right along its length. You'll deserve a drink after all that, so it's great to know that Oregon is at the forefront of the USA's independent brewery scene.


text:
using _01.Logger.Factories;
using _01.Logger.Models.ReaderModels;
using _01.Logger.Models.WriterModels;

namespace _01.Logger
{
    using _01.Logger.Engine;
    using _01.Logger.Interfaces;

    public class Startup
    {
        public static void Main()
        {
            var factoryAppender = new FactoryAppender();
            var factoryLayout = new FactoryLayout();
            IWriter consoleWriter = new ConsoleWriter();
            IReader consoleReader = new ConsoleReader();
            var controller = new Controller(factoryAppender, factoryLayout, consoleWriter, consoleReader);

            controller.Run();
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


This month has seen Google announce 'Rich Snippets' and Wolfram Research release Alpha to a flurry of mainstream media coverage; both are of interest to those working on the Semantic Web.This month's episode of the Semantic Web Gang takes a look at both stories, and Gang members share their impressions on the news and what it might mean moving forward.
This month has seen Google announce 'Rich Snippets' and Wolfram Research release Alpha to a flurry of mainstream media coverage; both are of interest to those working on the Semantic Web.
This month's episode of the Semantic Web Gang takes a look at both stories, and Gang members share their impressions on the news and what it might mean moving forward.
Next month's Semantic Web Gang will be coming live from the Semantic Technology Conference in San Jose.


Ethical Computing is a blog that focuses on the ethical management and use of information by organizations. Governmental agencies, business enterprises, and non-profits/NGOs depend upon the collection, creation, use, processing, analysis and dissemination of information. Statutes and regulations govern the use of some of this information, in certain contexts, by certain entities. But this legal framework is fragmentary, confusing, and incomplete. Organizations wishing to manage their information ethically need to go beyond the legal minimum. They need to develop policies that respect the rights and legitimate interests of their stakeholder groups. As emerging technologies such as AI pose new challenges, a comprehensive, systematic approach to data ethics will be required.
This Website contains short articles on a variety of topics. Please check back periodically for newly added content and links.
Recently Added: New article on Business Analysis and Data Ethics-White Paper-Mooradian-2019.
Ethics for Records and Information Management is now in print. See ALA store or Amazon below.


text:
By Fadi Elhusseini
The embassy of the State of Palestine in Hungary deeply regrets the recent remarks by H.E. Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó regarding the escalating aggression by Israel, the occupying Power, in Occupied Palestine.
On May 1st, Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) attacked peaceful Christian worshipers and denied them their basic right to celebrate the Holy Fire ceremony, at the Sepulchre Church in Jerusalem. One week ago, until now, IOF assaulted residents and solidarity protesters who rejected occupation's plans to evict Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood. Few days ago, IOF raided Al-Aqsa Mosque, surrounded and indiscriminately fired at defenceless worshippers and bystanders, injuring hundreds.
As if Israel hadn't enough. The occupying power pounded the besieged Gaza Strip claiming, to the moment, the lives of at least 119 Palestinians, including 31 children and 11 women, and more than 830 wounded since Monday. Such unprecedented attacks, with 160 Israeli aircrafts launching 600 missiles within 40 minutes, in addition to artillery shelling, caused massive destruction in the infrastructure, destroyed a lot of residential buildings and damaged scores of homes and schools. Hundreds of Palestinian families were displaced causing further hardship on people living already under severe economic conditions.
Words of condemnation in the strongest terms should have found their way towards these acts and the excessive use of force. Recalling incitement and provocation, oppression and discrimination, confiscating lands and demolishing homes, building and expanding settlements, torturing, extrajudicial killing and assassination, the list for what truly deserves condemnation in the strongest terms will be much longer.
This unparalleled aggression cannot be classified as "the right to self-defense." The killing of innocent civilians is a war crime, and this is what Israel has committed, and still. If one Israeli life matters, then one Palestinian life must matter. Ignoring this principled fact would eventually mean that the existence and the value of the lives of Palestinians as humans are not considered.
Favouring one side and showing solidarity with it is a sovereign decision. Nonetheless, ignoring the tragic events occurred in Jerusalem, disregarding the enormous pain and tremendous destruction that ravaged Gaza in the past days, and moreover condemning the Palestinian response, does in deed convey to Palestine a worrying message.
As a matter of fact, this position lacks the minimum balance and recognition of decisive irrefutable facts, not to mention downplaying the value and significance of the historical friendship between our nations.
As such, we call upon the government of Hungary to reconsider her position and to condemn the true aggressor, the occupying power, who triggered the current cycle of violence, aggravated tensions, and destabilized the volatile situation causing immense human suffering.
True Friendship dictates principled and balanced positions, and it sustains criticism at times.
Embassy of the State of Palestine in Hungary
Budapest on May 14, 2021
Identical Letters to Parliament and Government on Jerusalem
Statement of the Council of Arab Ambassadors in Hungary


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New LAX FlyAway Route From Expo Line Station to Cost $7
Photo: Andy Sternberg/Flickr/Creative Commons License
The Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners yesterday set a $7 one-way fare for the newest FlyAway bus service, which will shuttle travelers between Metro's Exposition Line at La Brea Avenue and LAX starting this spring.
But during the first six months of the new Expo bus service, the rate will be discounted to $6 one-way.
Airport officials say the cost of running the new service, which will make 18 trips a day, is $267,000 a year.
The airport commissioners also signed off on raising the one-way fare to $8 for FlyAway bus service between the Van Nuys bus terminal and LAX. The $1 increase will go into effect July 1, and is expected to reduce an annual $531,000 deficit in the budget for operating and maintaining the Van Nuys terminal to $168,000.


text:
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The Future of Non-Fungible Tokens in the Framework of Digitalization in Cultural Heritage, Heritage Law and Property Rights
by Çiçek Doğruel
3D scanning and printing has been among the most important technological developments in the protection of cultural heritage during the first quarter of the 21st century. On the other hand the debate of who should own the copyright of the scans is uncertain today. The ideological layers of the practices invite us to question the concept of digital colonialism regarding who and how take the advantage of digitization and the so-called worldwide accessibility.i The involvement of technology in cultural heritage preservation increases the need for more comprehensive and flexible international law while the efforts to adopt the changes are slow in legal systems.
In the 19th century the museums relied on the claim that they were making artifacts available for wide masses in order to legitimize the works they have possessed.ii Digitization creates the opportunity to return those as a wider audience with freely released data. On the other hand, some of the institutions holding the controversial artifacts are not willing to share digital copies either. Cosmo Wenman, an artist and activist for the free circulation of data, has several cases for open access advocacy. In 2016 Wenman requested access to the high quality 3D scans of the Nefertiti bust, which was guarded by the Berlin's Egyptian Museum and he was offered to a supervised study of the model at the German consulate in Los Angeles as if the data were at the state secret level.iii When he received a copy from the museum for the informational use, there was a copyright claim carved underside of the 3D model and included a Creative Common license. According to Dasari, 3D models created from physical objects are likely not copyrightable but if the underlying physical object is copyrighted, the owner can have protection if the model is printed as derivate.iv Even Wenman won the lawsuit in 2019, this was the legal battle of a single case, and there are still many others to go.v
Technological innovations that are realized by reconstructing identical replicas also appear in the heritage destroyed in armed conflict events. In these cases a limited and selected history is offered reflecting the European/American perspective and the digital replicas leave out all the cultural footprints of the locals. The Monumental Arch of Palmyra is one of the most significant artifacts destroyed in the attack by ISIS in 2015 was scanned and a 3D replica was displayed in various Western locations. The British authorities declared that the replica arch was an expression of a collective humanity and history and symbolizes the solidarity with Syrian community.vi While embracing Palmyra as a Western legacy enabled ISIS to get what it wantedvii, without any appropriate message on the war or what was happening in Syria, in Khunti's wordsviii "the Disneyfication" of the arch, might be seen unethical and disapproved. In this framework one should question what is the difference in hijacking a physical artifact and keep it in a Western museum and digitally copying a no longer exist artifact and keep it under lock and key leaving nothing for the people of the origin.
Monuverse
Since what can be scanned 3D and by whom, are not coded legally, a very controversial issue awaits us because it now concerns wider circles and untapped potential of economic markets. Regarding crypto currencies and cultural heritage preservation, the Global Heritage Fund explains their motivation as a new aspect in the metaverse where the digital representations will live in the blockchain forever where the investors would have a chance to virtually manipulate cultural artifacts and, as avatars, may enter into a metaverse where they could travel back in time to the use of physical objects they purchased as NFT. The virtual reality tourism project, enabling the site Ciudad Perdida, the "Lost City" in 2017 was virtually available with a 360 degree experience and they have an objective in the future to emerge NFT and virtual travel technologies for the potential buyers in the digital market who they claim to be the "active participators of preservation and conservation efforts from anywhere in the world".ix Monuverse is also one of those who took steps in this regard in by the tokenization of Arco the Bella in Italy, emerging with the promise of "becoming the real patron for the world's cultural heritage".x
As in the case of ethical issues in Palmyra, it can be assumed that the valuation and commodification here can injure and undermine the ties established by the local people with their historical and cultural heritage. While minting NFTs in heritage highlight economic disparity between the locals and Western crypto investors it may also result in one culture possessing another and its history.
As it was before tokens, museums and auctioneers will protect the intellectual property rights of digitalized artifacts in their collections but when it comes to immovable works, it is still susceptible to exploitation. Whether it is movable or immovable the open- ended tokenization of cultural heritage is threatening in terms of digital colonialism more than ever before. In order to talk about a true cosmopolitan heritage, all values and pluralistic responses must be embraced, the values and interests of the locals and the multi- layered culture of the sites must be preserved in future engagements through international regulations and laws.
About Çiçek Doğruel
Çiçek Doğruel is working as a research and teaching assistant at Koc University and having her Master's degree in the Department of Archaeology and History of Art. She focuses on cultural heritage management, European art and interactions with multidisciplinary approach and contributes to art publications and platforms.
i Stobiecka, Monika. "Archaeological Heritage in the Age of Digital Colonialism" Archaeological Dialogues 27, no. 2 (2020): 113–125.
ii Çelik, Zeynep. About Antiquities: Politics of Archaeology in the Ottoman Empire (University of Texas Press, 2016).
iii Wenman, Cosmo. "A German museum tried to hide this stunning 3D scan of an iconic Egyptian artifact: Today you can see it for the first time" Reason, November 13, 2019. https://reason.com/2019/11/13/a-german-museum-tried-to-hide- this-stunning-3d-scan-of-an-iconic-egyptian-artifact-today-you- can-see-it-for-the-first-time/
iv Abbott, Emily. "Reconstructing history: The ethical and legal implications of 3D technologies for public history, heritage sites, and museums." Huron Research, (2017): 1–26.
v Wenman's ongoing litigation is for online access to scans of Auguste Rodin's Works against Musée Rodin, France.
vi Bond, Sarah. "The ethics of 3D-printing Syria's cultural heritage" Forbes, 22 Eylül 2016. http://www.forbes.com/
vii Stobiecka, "Archaeological Heritage in the Age of Digital Colonialism".
viii Khunti, Roshni. "The Problem with Printing Palmyra: Exploring the Ethics of Using 3D Printing Technology to Reconstruct Heritage." Studies in Digital Heritage 2, no. 1 (2018): 1–12.
ix Sycip, George. "Crypto, Non-Fungible Tokens and the Potential of the Metaverse in Cultural Heritage Preservation" Global Heritage Fund, December 8, 2021. https://globalheritagefund.org/2021/12/08/crypto-nft-metaverse- cultural-heritage-preservation/
x Monuverse, 2022. https://www.monuverse.xyz/
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text:
Division of Banking
Division of Securities
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Colorado commends interim cannabis banking guidance issued from National Credit Union Administration
DENVER - Aug. 22, 2019 - The Division of Financial Services at the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) commends the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) for issuing Regulatory Alert 19-RA-02 to federally insured credit unions regarding changes in federal law and regulation related to industrial hemp.
The interim guidance issued on August 19, 2019 provides clarity for federally insured credit unions including a summary of the legal status of hemp and considerations for credit unions serving hemp-related businesses.
"Colorado has been on the forefront of innovation regarding industrial hemp, and we are committed to supporting this industry," said Governor Jared Polis. "I commend Chairman Hood and the National Credit Union Administration for providing guidance to our credit unions so they may provide access to essential financial services to our farmers and other business entrepreneurs involved in this exciting emerging industry."
"We applaud the NCUA for issuing much-needed clarity and guidance to federally-insured credit unions seeking to serve legally-operating hemp businesses in the United States," said DORA Executive Director Patty Salazar. "As Executive Director of Colorado's regulatory agency, one of my top priorities is to identify opportunities for basic business services, such as access to financial services and insurance, to be afforded to legal cannabis-related businesses as they would be accessible to any other industry. We appreciate the leadership of Chairman Hood and the NCUA's commitment to financial inclusion and to cultivating economic opportunity, which will be of great benefit for one of Colorado's newest and most exciting industries."
"Colorado is on track to be a leader in creating new economic opportunities involving hemp as an agricultural commodity, and to do this effectively requires an engaged financial system that serves the hemp industry," said Colorado Financial Services Commissioner Mark Valente, head of the Division of Financial Services at DORA which licenses and regulates Colorado's state-chartered credit unions. "When organizations like NCUA provide clear guidance to their credit union members, it opens up new pathways for businesses to be able to access much needed financial services in their communities."
Colorado has 37 state chartered credit unions with assets totaling over $22 billion and 44 federally chartered credit unions with assets totaling nearly $4 billion.
"In April 2019 the Division of Financial Services issued guidance to our state chartered credit unions regarding the 2018 Farm Bill and we continue to fully support their decision to serve the hemp industry," noted Valente. "As the industrial industry evolves, so will guidance for our financial industries, and it will be important that Colorado's credit union follow our state's laws, regulations and agreements for hemp related businesses. The Division, as well as NCUA, has made clear they must continue to comply with the Bank Secrecy Act and Anti-Money Laundering requirements, just like any other business account."
The Division of Financial Services is involved with the state's Colorado Hemp Advancement Management Plan (CHAMP) initiative to develop a process and regulatory structure for this growing industry.
About the Division of Financial Services
A Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies division, the Division of Financial Services protects consumers through regulation and supervision of state-chartered Credit Unions and Savings and Loan associations, the administration and enforcement of the Savings and Loan Public Deposit Protection Act, and certain financial activities of life care institutions. More information at dora.colorado.gov/dfs, call 303-894-2336 or email DORA_FinancialServices@state.co.us.
About DORA
The Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) is dedicated to preserving the integrity of the marketplace and is committed to promoting a fair and competitive business environment in Colorado. Consumer protection is our mission. Visit dora.colorado.gov for more information or call 303-894-7855 / toll free 1-800-886-7675 outside Denver metro area.
For all DORA announcements, visit What's New.
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Drinking age to be lowered from 25 to 21 in Delhi
Sisodia, who also holds the finance end education portfolios, said the government will ensure that there is no open drinking in the market areas or near wine shops.
Long queues at Liquor Shops (File)
New Delhi, March 22 : The Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia, announced on Monday that the legal age to consume alcohol in the national capital will be soon reduced from 25 to 21 in Delhi, the same as in Noida and Gurugram.
After the suggestions of the group of ministers on the new excise policy was passed by the Delhi Cabinet on Monday, Sisodia said that all liquor shops in the national capital will now be run by private vendors.
"The Delhi government will not operate any liquor shops and all shops will be run through private vendors. A bidding process will be conducted soon. We have decided not to increase the prices. No new liquor shops will be opened in the national capital," he said.
At present, 60 per cent liquor shops in the national capital are run by the Delhi government, while the remaining 40 per cent are operated by private vendors.
"We have prepared for some major changes in the new excise policy which will be announced soon. We are expecting that with the new excise policy, the Delhi government will witness an uptick in revenues," the Deputy CM said.
Drinking age
liquor shops
Budaun Rape case: "Women should not roam around in odd hours", says NCW member Chandramukhi
Budaun Rape case: NCW member Chandramukhi rather than blaming the accused, has actually pointed fingers at women who go to temples in the evening hours.
NH7 Weekender Express to travel to seven cities
New Delhi, Sep 11: Bacardi NH7 Weekender Express will travel to seven cities, starting from Kolkata on October 7.…
byShikha Mehta
Slums in Jharkhand to get Mohalla Clinics like Delhi
Ranchi, June 30 (IANS) Taking a cue from the Delhi government, the Raghubar Das government plans to start…
Bihar flood toll rises to 153
According to an official release, the floods have claimed 153 lives.


text:
Q: Change datatype of array in python I get this error:
MemoryError: Unable to allocate array with shape (3000, 525571) and data type float64

for this codeline:
Qday = Q.resample('D').sum()

Befor this happend i got the nearly the same error on another line, but there i found a solution:
Q = pd.DataFrame(Q_tmp, index=Th.index).astype(np.float32) #MemoryError!

float32 has to be enough for me, but how can i set the array to use this type?
or can i globally change the default from float64 to float32?

A: With this code after the numpy import, it works. :-)
import numpy as np
_oldarray = np.array
def array32(*args, **kwargs):
    if 'dtype' not in kwargs:
        kwargs.update(dtype=float32)
    _oldarray(*args, **kwargs)
np.array = _oldarray


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Users of our service, setting IP-address 2.82.32.131, can obtain information about the name of the provider, the ASN number, the ISP, country and region of placement of server equipment, information about the time zone and geographical coordinates (latitude / longitude) of a provider of hosting services. For user convenience, the location of server equipment, in graphical form, shown with a marker on the maps GoogleMaps.


text:
Of all the public services, that of the navy is the one in which tampering may be of the greatest danger, which can worst be supplied upon an emergency, and of which any failure draws after it the longest and heaviest train of consequences. I am far from saying, that this or any service ought not to be conducted with economy. But I will never suffer the sacred name of economy to be bestowed upon arbitrary defalcation of charge.
I HAVE ever thought the prohibition of the means of improving our rational nature, to be the worst species of
tyranny that the insolence and perverseness of mankind ever dared to exercise. This goes to all men, in all situations, to whom education can be denied.
EMBASSIES FROM INDIVIDUALS TO FOREIGN
GOVERNMENTS.
The legitimate and sure mode of communication between this nation and foreign powers, is rendered uncertain, precarious, and treacherous, by being divided into twochannels, one with the government, one with the head of a in opposition to that government; by which means the foreign powers can never be assured of the real authority or validity of any public transaction whatsoever.
On the other hand, the advantage taken of the discontent which at that time prevailed in parliament and in the nation, to give to an individual an influence directly against the government of his country, in a foreign court, has made a highway into England for the intrigues of foreign courts in our affairs. This is
a 'sore evil; an evil from which, before this time, England was more free than any other nation. Nothing can preserve us from that evil-which connects cabinet factions abroad with popular factions here, but the keeping sacred the crown, as the only channel of communication with every other nation.
ENGLAND. FRANCE. THE EMPEROR. THE EMPIRE. But the great resource of Europe was in England: not in a sort of England detached from the rest of the world, and amusing herself with the puppet-shew of a naval power, (it can be no better, whilst all the sources of that power, and of every sort of power, are precarious,) but in that sort of England, who considered herself as embodied with Europe ; but in that sort of England, who, sympathetic with the adversity or the happiness of mankind, felt that nothing in human affairs was foreign to her. We may consider it as a sure axiom that, as on the one hand no confederacy of the least effect or duration can exist against France, of which England is not only a part, but the head, so neither can England pretend to cope with France but as connected with the body of Christendom.
England, except during the eccentric aberration of Charles the Second, has always considered it as her duty and interest, to take her place in such a confederacy. Her chief disputes must ever be with France, and if England shews herself indifferent and unconcerned when these powers are combined against the enterprizes of France, she is to look with certainty for the same indifference on the part of these powers, when she may be at war with that nation. This will tend totally to disconnect this kingdom from the system of Europe, in which, if she ought not rashly
to meddle, she ought never wholly to withdraw herself from it.
I wind up all in a full conviction within my own breast, and the substance of which I must repeat over and over again, that the state of France is the first consideration in the politics of Europe, and of each state, externally as well as internally considered.
This general balance was regarded in four principal points of views:--the GREAT MIDDLE BALANCE, which comprehend Great Britain, France, and Spain ; the BALANCE OF THE NORTH ; the BALANCE, external and internal, of GERMANY ; and the BALANCE OF Italy. In all those systems of balance, England was the power to whose custody it was thought it might be most safely committed.
France, as she happened to stand, secured the balance, or endangered it. Without question she had been long the security for the balance of Germany, and under her auspices the system, if not formed, had been at least perfected. She was so in some measure with regard to Italy, more than occasionally, She had a clear interest in the balance of the North, and had endeavoured to preserve it.
It is always the interest of Great Britain that the power of France should be kept within the bounds of moderation. It is not her interest that that power should be wholly annihilated in the system of Europe.
I do not conceive that the total annihilation of France (if that could be effected). is a desirable thing to Europe; or even to this, its rival nation. Provident patriots did not think it good for Rome, that even Carthage should be quite destroyed; and he was a wise Greek, wise for the general Grecian interests, as well as a brave Lacedemonian enemy, and generous conqueror, who did not wish, by the destruction of Athens, to pluck out the other eye of Greece.
As to the power of France, as a state, and in its exterior relations, I confess my fears are on the part of its extreme reduction *. There is undoubtedly something in the vicinity of France, which makes it naturally and properly an object of our watchfulness and jealousy, whatever form its Government may take. But the difference is great between a plan for our own security, and a scheme for the utter destruction of France. If there were no other countries in the political map
but these two, I admit that policy might justify a wish to lower our neighbour to a standard which would even render her in some measure, if not wholly, our dependent. But the system of Europe is extensive and extremely complex. However formidable to us as taken in this one relation, France is not equally dreadful to all other States. On the contrary, my clear opinion is; that the liberties of Europe cannot possibly be preserved, but by her remaining a very great and preponderating power.
Some of these nations the people of France are jealous of; such are the English, and the Spaniardsothers they despise; such are the Italiansmothers they hate and dread ; such are the German and Danubian powers.
* This was written early in 1793,
The Einperor is the natural guardian of Italy and Germany; the natural balance against the ambition of France, whether republican or monarchical.
If Europe does not conceive the independence, and the equilibrium of the empire to be in the very'essence of the system of balanced power in Europe, and if the scheme of public law, or mass of laws, upon which that independence and equilibrium are founded, be of no leading consequence as they are preserved or destroyed, all the politics of Europe for more than two centuries have been miserably erroneous.
I allow indeed that the empire of Germany raises her revenue and her troops by quotas and contingents ; but the revenue of the empire, and the army of the empire, is the worst revenue, and the worst army, in the world.'
ESTIMATION OF PROFESSIONS.
The degree of estimation in which any profession held, becomes the standard of the estimation in which the professors hold themselves.
ETIQUETTE. ETIQUETTE, if I understand rightly the term, which in any extent is of modern usage, had its original application to those ceremonial and formal observances practised at courts, which had been established by long usage, in order to preserve the sovereign power from the rude intrusion of licentious familiarity, as