Ron Chernow has given readers, those interested in American history as well American Presidential history, a gift.
The gift is his award winning biography of the 18th President of the United States, Ulysses S Grant.
As noted in the quote about from the introduction Chernow, with skill and effective use of numerous first person sources and documentation, pushes back against the common perception of Grant and effectively presents the Civil War general and President in all of his (Grant's) complexity.
Chernow does not dismiss Grant's habits and problems. He acknowledges that Grant dealt with a drinking habit throughout his adult life that he attempted to overcome with the help of others. Chernow also acknowledges that Grant did not often see the problems in his subordinates until it was too late and it caused him numerous headaches as President.
To this reviewer, Chernow's biography of the 18th American President presents a much fuller, and honest, portrait of him. Of note was his increasing passionate support of the rights of African Americans in the post-war era and for the need for Reconstruction.
Chernow's portrait of Grant, neither fully sympathetic nor totally hostile, clearly paints a picture of a complex man who oversaw the United States as it moved toward the twentieth century as an industrial nation and out of the nineteenth century as a primarily agrarian nation.
This review believes that Grant is vitally important study of a Civil War hero and American President who serve American during a criticial period.
I gave this book a five star rating of Goodreads.
Note: I received this book as a gift and chose to write a review of it.
With my finishing George W Bush's Decision Points a few days ago and my reading of Barak Obama's Dreams from My Father back before he was both nominated and elected the United States' 44th President, I have completed a reading project that I began in 1981/82 and decided to finish in earnest after President Obama's election two years ago – that of reading a biography/autobiography of every American President.
It started with Richard Nixon's memoirs, then onto Robert Caro's wonderful multivolume work on Lyndon Johnson (for which I am patiently waiting for the fourth and probably final volume), then onto Gerald Ford's autobiography. Years passed with a reading here and there of a President.
Finally, after a break in the summer of 2009, I began the final leg of the journey in chronological order starting with Washington and working forward in order of election. I suggest that if you want to engage a similar project that you read them in this order as it will provide you a fascinating contrast in both the books your read and in the tapestry of history that is woven as you read.
While I learned valuable facts and was presented with a variety of perspectives on both the men in office and the culture of their day, political and otherwise, in all the books of this group I read, Perret's bio of Grant, Leech's bio of McKinley, Russell's bio of Harding and Coolidge's plain spoken and simple autobiography stood out to me. However, each of the others provided good background to the policies, culture, and politics of the day.
1. The development of the office from an executive director type position to a strong executive branch and leader.
From my reading, the Presidency prior to Andrew Jackson was overshadowed by a strong legislative branch. Yes there was Washington, both Adams, Jefferson, Madison and Monroe, all who have influenced our political and international history and shaped our policies over the decades. That all changed with the election of Andrew Jackson. His strong personality changed the Presidential office forever. And he threw American politics into a higher gear.
2. Some shaped the office and the direction of the nation who are not listed among the "top Presidents" on many scholars list.
Two cases in point: James Polk and Andrew Johnson. Polk set the very important precedent of succession in 1841 when he assumed, much to the grave displeasure of the Whig Party and Henry Clay, the Presidency after the first death in office by William Henry Harrison. The precedent would stand until the 39th amendment ratified in 1967, after the deaths of Taylor, Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, Harding, FDR, and JFK occurred (and which in several instances left the office of Vice President vacant for the reminder of the assumed terms), which laid out the line of succession when the President died in office.
Johnson, who assumed the office after Lincoln's assassination, and narrowly escaped impeachment, set the tone of the country in a direction that, I believe, would have been vastly different to the direction Lincoln would have gone. Race relations and the redevelopment and development of the American south, among other things, were affected by Johnson's time in office. But, as the next point will highlight, there was a growing western influence and industrial base that began to grow no matter who was President.
3. Forces, some regional and, later on national, then international, often exerted a greater influence on a President that is perhaps realized.
I think that this is the case in the administrations of Fillmore, Buchanan, and Pierce. The fever pitch sectional differences between North and South (and both had their supporters in the opposing regions) created a force that these men were powerless to change. Of course political coalitions (and parties) were very much a part of the 1850's as the parties of that day were more like political amoebas than the strong and vast organizations of today. Those coalitions, I think, were though, as much to blame for the gridlock on not just slavery but a whole host of issues, in a nation that was beginning to become industrial and less a north/south nation and more of a north/south/west nation.
For Hayes, Arthur, Garfield, and Harrison, the push west and then into the Pacific, was a force that has implications still today for our nation. McKinley, and Mrs. Leech does a wonderful job on this point, brings to the front the international situations of Cuba and the Philippines that forced him, to be the predecessor to the 20th century Presidency (and now 21st century).
Now, I know that a subject of often great contention not just today but I think in the past 40 years, given the rise of faith-based organizations on both the left and the right, has to do with Presidential faith. One of the interesting things about reading these books is that they span over a century of work (Edward Shepherd's bio of Martin Van Buren, was written in the 1890's). As a result, there are different treatments of a President's faith. Some of the books that I read had little to say about it. Of the autobios that I read, (Grant, Coolidge, Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Clinton, Obama, and GWB) the later men have more to say about faith than the earlier men. I think that the cultural milieu of each author has an impact here.
Now of all the bios/autobios that I read in this endeavor, here the ones that have made an impression on me throughout the entire process.
Robert A Caro's LBJ series is rich and wonderful. The third volume The Master of the Senate gives a wonderful introduction to the history of the US Senate and how LBJ overcame that history to become the Majority Leader.
Calvin Coolidge's autobiography is a classic. Simple and direct with New England wit.
Joseph J Ellis' American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson gave me some new insights into our third President whose philosophy of government is still strong today.
Margaret Leech's bio of William McKinley. At times McKinley is in the background as Leech brings the normal background of biography to the foreground to help the reader understand the emerging international environment that McKinley had to address while in office.
Geoffrey Perret's bio of Grant brings out several valid points about the Civil War and its conduct as well as capturing what I believe was the essence of Grant's personality – simple and humble. Grant's own biography is worth the read. It is simply one of the most well written autobios that I have ever read. Period.
Robert Rayback's bio of Millard Fillmore gives us a wonderful glimpse of a President that few care to know about. Well written and worth your time.
Finally Russell's treatment of Harding is intense and deep. Written and published under a legal order that prohibited the publishing of letters between Harding and Carrie Phillips, it probes who Harding was and became in the context of his upbringing and life.
History happens and there are facts that are indisputable because they are observable and, as often is the case, recorded for posterity. But the challenge and the friction of history, that often cause people to react in strong ways, is the reason of "why" did such and such happen. That is where the personalities of historical study and the forces of the "why" collide into the moments in which various forces and personalities, as well as good and evil, operate.
Since resuming my reading in the fall, I have read the following biographies.
I am currently reading Millard Fillmore: Biography of A President by Robert J. Rayback and President James Buchanan by Philip Shriver Klein.
What I have taken away from these books (and from the Fillmore and Buchanan bios so far) is that these Presidencies contained some important (and overlooked) developments obscured by the larger Presidencies such as Lincoln, Wilson, and FDR.
Here are few: The development of the two-party system that we often lament. Third parties were the norm it appears for a while and in the age of Jackson and post-Jackson, the emerging of strong and centrally controlled political parties, was only beginning. Coalitions, which often would change within a year, were the norm in the political climate of the day.
With the historic election of our current President last November, I made a determination to complete a personal project that I had started about 1982, reading a biography or autobiography of every US President. Robert A Caro's wonderful series on Lyndon Baines Johnson is what got me started and I am anxiously awaiting the fourth volume of his series.
So far, I have read bios/auto-bios of Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Monroe, Van Buren, Polk, Taylor, Lincoln, TR, Taft, Wilson, FDR, Truman, Eisenhower, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, and Clinton and I am currently reading Sidney Howard Gay's tome on James Madison. The list of what I have read so far appears at the end of this post.
Reading these books has been a wonderful re-introduction to US History and has given me a new understanding and appreciation of our nation. Here are some themes that I have caught my attention thus far.
We alternate between a progressive and a conservative political agenda.
To me this was true 100 years ago but in the opposite direction that it is today. Teddy Roosevelt, who has become one of my favorite Presidents, became a consummate reformer especially after the 1904 election that enabled him to claim the presidency outright after an incomplete first term as President due to the assassination of William McKinley. A member of his cabinet William Howard Taft who (at least from the Judith Icke Anderson biography I read) followed him with a more conservative perspective. Sometimes one agenda has operated over a longer period of time than one administration.
There is an ongoing tension between states rights' and a strong central government.
My current reading of Madison's bio reminds me of this tension. And today, there is a renewed call about states' rights as a response to the tremendous government financial intervention that has many people concerned.
Religious freedom… and tolerance… is an on-going challenge and hallmark of our national life and history.
I know today that there is concern about the increasing 'secularization' of our nation that many people see happening in Europe. But, something I read in Gay's bio of Madison (which was published in 1884) leads me to believe that this is not necessarily so. In a footnote about the religious freedom debate in the Virginia Legislature, Gay quotes Thomas Jefferson, then in France, about the reasonableness of the measure. "it is comfortable to see the standard of reason at length erected, after so many ages, during which the human mind has been held in vassalage by kings, priests, and nobles; and it is honorable for us to have produced the first legislature who had the courage to declare that the reason of man maybe trusted with the formation of his own opinions.' What this says to me is that the freedom to believe, and not believe, is woven into the fabric our national life and that religious freedom is a hallmark of our democracy because it has (to the consternation of some, I am sure) become a right that is rejected or embraced at the individual level without government sponsorship or enforcement. A re-read of European history with the blending of church and state for many centuries should make this clear.
From the Constitutional Convention of 1787 through the Civil War, slavery cast a long shadow over national politics.
This shadow was apparent to Madison as our national leaders struggled to bring the states together to create a new form of government because the Articles of Confederacy were proving to be ineffective in governing our fledgling nation.
The evolution of the Civil Service.
This a theme that I hope to read more of as I read the bios/auto-bios of the Presidents after Lincoln and before Teddy Roosevelt. We know the Civil Service today as 'the bureaucracy.' And it is railed against, primarily by conservatives, as a problem. But the 'professionalization' of the Civil Service in the late 1800's and early 1900's has, in my opinion, created a measure of steady consistency over the years.
It is easy to forget that the capitol of the US when George Washington took office was not Washington D.C. The White House was occupied first by John Adams, our second president. It has been renovated several times and was perhaps on its 'last legs' more than once. Thinking about the White House also reminds me how access to the President has been greatly limited over the years. Clinton's note about the decision to block off Pennsylvania Avenue was a solemn reminder of how much the world has changed. 100 years ago, Roosevelt and Taft could move around more freely with some security but nothing like today.
Campaigning back then would be welcomed today!
We recall the thousand upon thousands who gathered in Grant Park to celebrate the election of President Obama… and the millions of dollars spent…and the endless amount of TV ads and direct mail…and the trips across the country. But, by in the days of Van Buren and even 90 years ago, most Presidents did not travel to 'press the flesh' and ask for our votes. They stayed home and the press of that day came to them! Truman's historic 1948 election was a change in presidential politics and campaigning. Furthermore, results were not known often for several weeks instead of the almost instantaneous results (with some notably embarrassing exceptions).
I am going to take a summer break from reading presidential bios and auto-bios, and resume in the fall.
Here is the list of the books I have read so far. The ones italicized are recommended for your reading.


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Sturgeon admits to suffering 'imposter syndrome' in FM role
By Herald Scotland Online
Nicola Sturgeon has said she "absolutely" suffers from "imposter syndrome" in her job as Scottish First Minister.
She also revealed that she speaks to her mother Joan every day and that getting married to her husband, SNP chief executive Peter Murrell, had made her feel "more secure and stable".
Read more: SNP headed for 'all-time record' in European elections
The SNP leader told community radio station Sunny Govan Radio: "Even though I have been in politics for a long time, I have been First Minister for four years, there will be days when I think 'should I even be here? Is somebody about to find me out?'"
Radio host Anne Hughes had asked Ms Sturgeon, who is Scotland's first female first minister, if she ever suffered from imposter syndrome.
The SNP leader told her: "Absolutely, I don't think there is a woman alive, particularly working-class women, who don't experience that at some point in their lives, and probably quite regularly.
"I just think it is natural. In some ways I think women should work to overcome that, and be encouraged to overcome it, but there is a bit of humility as well that I don't think we should ever lose completely.
"While sometimes over my career I've thought it would be good to be a bit more self-confident and have less of that feeling, I wouldn't like to lose it completely because I do think it is important you keep yourself grounded."
Read more: Labour blunder sees Highland residents sent election leaflets in Welsh - not Gaelic
She went on to say that earlier in her career she took herself "far too seriously" and had adopted an "adversarial, almost macho approach, because that's what I thought you had to do".
But she said: "For women that is just a double whammy because if you behave in that way you are described as being unwomanly and not being a real woman. And sometimes if you behave more like a woman you get described as being weak and not serious enough."
The First Minister added: "My advice to anybody in politics or anywhere else, any young woman, is you've just got to find a way of being yourself, whatever that is, and not try to be something else, be yourself."
Read more: Smacking ban could lead to police investigations, warn campaigners
She spoke about the support she gets from her parents, husband and sister throughout the interview, saying: "Particularly the line of work I am in, politics can be a bit cut-throat, it can be a bit stab-in-the-back sometimes, so you really need the people you know you can rely on, and I'm lucky to have some brilliant people."
Ms Sturgeon told how she still gets nervous "every single time" before giving a speech, as she told how standing for election was "risking mass public rejection and you feel very vulnerable every time you do that".
She added: "Every time I stand up in Parliament or do a television interview or television debate I fell vulnerable, because just in the blink of an eye I could just crash and burn."
The First Minister said she "wouldn't be where I am without my mum and dad and my sister and all the support I have had throughout my entire life".
She stated: "At the end of the day if I've had a really bad day there's nothing like picking up the phone to my mum, and just hearing that there's nothing that would make her not be on my side."
Ms Sturgeon continued: "My mum insists I phone her every day.
"Sometimes we're on the phone for 30 seconds, but it has been like this since I went away to university, she always wanted me to phone to make sure I was OK, so now there's not a day when I don't talk to her."
Speaking about her relationship with Mr Murrell, she said she had always thought "marriage doesn't matter, it's just a bit of paper".
She added: "It was a real surprise to me, a really pleasant surprise, how much it did matter when we did it, and how much it made me feel, almost overnight, more secure and stable.
"I don't think I expected that so that was probably a nice surprise."
Watchdog to probe closureof girls' school
Egyptian Halls revival could cost up to £30m
Rail chiefs face pay cuts as Scots are hit by five-year train delays high
US warship shoots down 'provocative and hostile' Iranian drone
Fresh concerns raised over 'national scandal' of Scots wind farm jobs going abroad
Scottish ministers could - and should - do more to end drug deaths
Catriona Stewart: Can we accept breasts are for fun and for function?
Harry Potter's Scottish steam rail journey judged the best in Britain

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


ReadyGo Media partnered with Koko Monk Chocolates this Spring to create a special chocolate tasting event that marked the launch their first retail store.
Paul Dincer, owner and chocolatier of Koko Monk Chocolates, began as Levni Chocolates and sold in five Vancouver farmer's markets over three years leading to its opening. In February 2013, Koko Monk opened its first retail location in Kitsilano. Koko Monk creates handmade, hand painted, hand tempered fine chocolates with unique flavor fusions. Each Koko Monk chocolate is indeed a work of art. The chocolates engage all the senses from a one-of-a kind beauty to delightful flavour combinations drawing on inspirations from Shakespeare to post-modernism.
Joanne Probyn, founder and digital strategist of ReadyGo Media, worked with Paul to carefully select twelve special guests for Koko Monk's Exclusive Chocolate Tasting Night. Present were food critics, bloggers and photographers that ranged from the promising and talented food storytellers, FoodGays, to Canada's most authoritative news source, The Globe and Mail. Each was invited for his or her style, taste and sophistication. Yet despite their vast experiences, few had enjoyed a chocolate tasting before; the excitement leading to the event was palpable across social media channels. And the enthusiasm continued throughout the event; while the event officially ended at 8pm, many guests stayed late with the last person leaving after 10pm. "ReadyGo Media far exceeded my expectations," says Paul. "It was incredible to meet all of these remarkable, like-minded food lovers all at once. I make my chocolates for people like them." Each guest was served a flight of six chocolates and Paul guided the food connoisseurs through a blind tasting that revealed his complex flavour combinations and concepts. The last chocolate was paired with a dessert wine, expressly recommended for one of Koko Monk's chocolates by one of North America's most accomplished fine wine connoisseurs, San Diego-based Francois-Xavier Auffret.
This event was possible with the generous support of our many sponsors–special thanks to Suki's Salon & Spa, Hilary Miles Flowers, Costen Catbalue Goldsmith & Design, Barry Calhoun Photography and Vision Event Photography. We would also like to thank all our speecial guests for their enthusiasm, pioneering spirit and community support.
We've been thrilled with the positive feedback so far including several outstanding articles written by Ariane C. Design, VanFoodster, FoodGays and Eating in Vancouver. Some people were captivated by Paul's passion for chocolate, while others were surprised and delighted with the artistry behind Koko Monk's culinary creations.
Due to the event's success and wide public interest, ReadyGo Media will continue event planning and marketing initiatives with Koko Monk Chocolates. Be the first to find out about our next Koko Monk chocolate tasting event by joining Koko Monk's mailing list today (via Levni Chocolates).
…great advice regarding my website. Joanne is highly conversant with all of the new social networking sites as well.


Home > Jamaica Hotel Transport > Round Hill Hotel Transport > Round Hill Hotel Airport Transfers From Montego Bay.
PPJTours welcomes you to our Montego Bay Airport Transportation to the Round Hill Hotel booking page. Here you are able to book your private one way or round trip transfers between Montego Bay Airport and Round Hill Hotels, Jamaica.
Ask a question about the Round Hill Hotel Airport Transfers From Montego Bay.


Spacious floor plan with 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath, with 3 bedrooms downstairs and a seperate Master Suite with Loft upstairs. Vaulted ceilings, large living and formal dining rooms, and seperate family room. The kitchen has a breakfast bar, tile, and nook area. The living room has wood flooring, ceiling fans, and open area for entertaining. Large backyard, 3 car garage, and close to shopping and freeways. No HOA. A Must See!


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ENERGY - MAIN
Italy opposes Poseidon gas pipeline landfall
Italy will not allow the Poseidon gas pipeline being developed by Italy's Edison and Greece's DEPA to make landfall as planned in southern Italy, the Prime Minister said on Tuesday.
The Poseidon pipeline, which has permits to run from Greece to the southern town of Otranto, is the final section of the EastMed pipeline that aims to bring gas reserves from the east Mediterranean to Italy.
"The government is certainly not interested at present in building the final tract of Poseidon as originally planned," Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said at an event near Rome.
Two years ago DEPA and Edison signed a cooperation agreement with Russia's Gazprom to set up joint efforts to create a southern route for gas into Europe.
The United States has been pressuring EU member states to find alternative natural gas supply sources not involving Russia.
But Conte said the pipeline could find a fit with the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) being built to carry Azeri gas into the south of Italy.
The TAP pipeline is seen by many as a way of weaning Europe off over-reliance on Russian gas.
"It could have development potential, a link to Italy," Conte said.
Italy's populist 5-Star Movement, part of the ruling coalition with right-wing Lega, has said it wants to phase out fossil fuels by 2050 by ramping up renewable energy production.
Edison, owned by France's EDF, was not immediately available for a comment.
Tags: DEPA, Edison, Italy, Poseidon gas pipeline


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Code of Ethics of members Association - is a document that declares principles, which are to be implemented in the field of physical rehabilitation to increase potential and opportunities for personal growth and development of skills for people with disabilities and meet their needs.
Code of Ethics of members Association identifies ethical principles for carrying out professional and management activities and establishing interaction with clients (patients). The document provides advice on different ways of solving problems, dealing with ethical issues and making appropriate professional decisions.
The draft of the Code of Ethics of members Association was developed on the basis of the international ethical principles and standards of physical therapy practice, defined at the general meeting of the World Confederation of Physical Therapy (WCPT).
1.12. Members Association shall comply with the legislation of Ukraine when dealing with suppliers, manufacturers and other agents.
2.2. Members Association have the right to refuse to treat or otherwise intervene when in their opinion the service is not in the best interests of the client (patient).
3.3. For each client (patient), accepted for service, members Association undertake appropriate examination/evaluation to allow the development of a diagnosis.
offer referral to another qualified professional, whose services will be in the best interests of the client (patient).
4.9. Members Association who knowingly allow abuse of their services, must take responsibility for it.
that any breaches of the rules and violations are reported to the appropriate authorities.
apply current management principles and practices to the conduct of the service, with particular attention to appropriate standards of personnel management.
6.2. Members Association should not apply undue intervention to their own benefit.
7.4. Members Association shall claim only those titles which correctly describe their professional status.
8.2. Members Association are obliged to work toward achieving justice in the provision of health services for all people.


We offer food options from soup and a sandwich through to a full meals service. All we ask is that you give us some notice so that we can everything arranged for your arrival.
If that doesn't suit you then get ready to refuel after a successful round with delicious local grub from nearby restaurants and cafes. Our friendly staff will always be happy to give you recommendations too.
As one of the oldest inns in Ayrshire, The Champion Shell Inn must be doing something right to still be in business 250 years after they first opened their doors; perhaps it has something to do with the homemade steak pies they serve up! A light bites menu is also available if you are looking for a quick snack.
Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner you will be able to find something for every appetite at Duncans. An extensive cocktail menu and wine cellar will help you unwind after a successful days golfing. Don't forget to check their offers page to nab a great deal on your meal.
For an Italian inspired meal make a stop at Cecchinis. Discuss your day and relive your best shots over a sharing platter or 28 day aged steak. Looking for more of a quick lunch? Take a look at their lunch menu where items start from only £6.
Morrisons– Stock up on supplies for the journey home or grab a quick snack to keep your energy up while you take on the Ardeer course. There is also a Morrisons Cafe if you want to sit down for a coffee or bite to eat.
Highly rated maritime museum in Irvine. It has a fantastic collections of historic vessels and is a great way of finding out more about the rich maritime history this part of the world has.
Walking through the mill is like taking a step back in time. We recommend visiting to see the fully restored watermill and the granaries that look just like they used to so many years ago.
Looking for a little fun out in the water? Geronimo Sailing have a few locations dotted along the coast and offer half day sailing trips. If you're planning a party or big day out with a large group, it's well worth combining a trip on the links with a spot of sailing (they even do a trip to a distillery).
If it's a family day out, Artastic is a great little spot. The arts and crafts centre is open Wednesdays to Sundays and offers artistic workshops for kids to get creative.
Make Ardeer you first stop on a golfing tour of the West coast of Scotland by playing through nearby clubs to take in all that the Ayrshire Links have to offer.
For a quick round stop off at Auchenharvie's 9 hole course. There are also 18 practice bays to firm up your technique. A robust series of classes and training opportunities makes this course ideal if you are taking a new player on their first golf tour.
Established in 1887 this James Braid designed course is expected to be played in 4 hours.
These 18 holes provide stunning views of Arran and the Ayrshire coast. A bar and dining in the traditional clubhouse offers a welcome spot to relax after a round.
Portland Course to find out for yourself just why this challenging course has hosted the Open championship 9 times.


text:
Where and How to Find Your Soulmate
Billed as a romantic comedy, Beyond the Sea seems to be more about grief. The Festival Players of Prince Edward County are presenting this new play by Kristen DaSilva on the outdoor pavilion stage at the Eddie Hotel and Farm. I say it's about grief, but I laughed out loud throughout the show.
Love and loss are woven skillfully together in this endearing play. Gwen (Jane Spence) and Theo (Jeffrey Wetsch) are thrown together for an afternoon which turns out to be actually life changing. Gwen is under-employed, selling tickets on the dock for a "Ghost Boat Cruise", for which she supplies some sound effects for the ghost story. Theo arrives to meet a blind date to take her on the cruise, but she's late and he misses the boarding. Gwen and Theo start up a conversation, with the two trading barbs and clever comments. Eventually we learn Gwen is mourning her late husband's death. Despite what she says, we learn that she hasn't handled the grief very well. Theo is also grieving his divorce and the loss of what was a promising relationship. They share some rather personal stories, based on the assumption they will never see each other again. The play is both heart-wrenching and heartwarming.
A husband and wife couple in real life, Jane Spence and Jeffrey Wetsch bring the two engaging characters to life. I wonder if I would have been so enamoured with them, if this couple didn't have such powerful chemistry. Both Spence and Wetsch have impressive bios. Spence has been in theatres across Ontario, performing in shows such as Mirvish's Calendar Girls and in various Shakespearean plays at the Stratford Festival and elsewhere. Similarly, Wetsch has performed across Ontario, including Mirvish's Dirty Dancing and six seasons at Stratford Festival. Their skills as both dramatic and comedic actors are quite evident as they appeal to the audiences' emotions.
The outdoor pavilion stage has been well used again this summer, after being constructed as a Covid necessity last year. This play, set on a dock by a lake in a summer tourist town, is just right for the outdoor setting in Prince Edward County. The play contains Ontario references which fit perfectly.
Beyond the Sea is well written, filled with clever dialogue and recognizable personalities. The two actors bring those characters to life, providing a full range of emotions. We laughed, we cried, but more importantly we learned about relationships, new and old. This sweet story presented by these brilliant actors who draw you into their emotional journey, is a must-see. It will charm you, no matter your age or where you are when it comes to relationships.
Beyond the Sea continues with the Festival Players of Prince Edward County at The Eddie Hotel & Farm, Bloomfield until September 4. For tickets, visit https://www.festivalplayers.ca/.
Photo: Jeffrey Wetsch as Theo, Jane Spence as Gwen. Photo by Sarah Kirby.
By Kristen DaSilva
Directed by Derek Ritschel
Performed by Jane Spence and Jeffrey Wetsch
Produced by Festival Players of Prince Edward County
Eddie Hotel & Farm, Bloomfield


The Evers proposal targets communities that provide financing help for commercial developments through tax incremental financing districts.
The amount of cash provided to commercial developers by Wisconsin communities would be limited under the new state budget proposal from Gov. Tony Evers.
While that wouldn't stop local money flowing to such projects as Foxconn Technology Group's factories, it could affect future developments in Milwaukee and other communities.
And the proposal is drawing concerns from a commercial development trade group.
It "would undo years of bipartisan work to create the most important, and really the only tool Wisconsin municipalities have to spur economic development and create jobs," said Jim Villa, chief executive officer of the Wisconsin chapter of NAIOP, formerly known as the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties.
The proposal would "have serious negative consequences on real estate and economic development in Wisconsin," Villa said, in a statement.
Evers' budget plan includes a provision targeting communities which provide financing help for commercial developments through tax incremental financing districts.
New property tax revenue generated by commercial developments within the financing districts pay those costs.
Communities often use some of that revenue to pay for public improvements, such as roads, sewers and water mains, which are tied to new development.
But another portion of that revenue is used to finance private developments, which can include hotels, apartments, office towers, shopping centers and industrial buildings.
Those payments occur only if the community determines the commercial development wouldn't happen without local financing help.
The governor's 2019-'21 budget proposal, released Thursday night, would limit cash grants for developers to 20 percent of a tax financing district's project costs.
So, for example, a financing district with total project costs of $10 million would be limited to providing $2 million in cash for private development.
According to the proposal, the cap on such grants would restore tax financing districts to their original purpose: to pay for roads, sewers and other public improvements needed for new development.
Limiting the grants "protects local property taxpayers by ensuring districts do not remain open for unnecessarily long times to pay back those subsidies," the proposal said.
Also, Evers wants tax financing district project plans to include "stress tests" in their financial projections.
That would help local officials better understand the risks if projected revenue falls short, the proposal said.
Wisconsin has around 100 distressed tax financing districts, according to the Department of Revenue.
Tax financing districts typically take several years to pay their costs before the increased property tax base from the development becomes available to the city, school district and other local governments.
Distressed districts are those which failed to pay their costs within the state limit of 27 years.
Much of the budget proposal will be rewritten by Republicans who control both houses of the Legislature.
However, Evers, a Democrat, has one of the nation's strongest line-item veto powers.
The 20 percent limit would not have affected what is perhaps Wisconsin's best-known tax financing district — created for Foxconn's manufacturing complex in Mount Pleasant.
That district's project costs, paid by Mount Pleasant and Racine County, will total an estimated $912 million. Most of the money is being used to buy land, build public improvements and pay interest on debt.
Around $100 million will be paid to Foxconn. That's about 11% of the total project costs.
However, the limit on grants to developers would have affected Milwaukee's largest tax financing district.
The Common Council and Mayor Tom Barrett in 2013 created a district that is providing $54 million to help finance Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co.'s office tower and commons.
That financing district's total costs are budgeted at $86.6 million — with the grants provided to Northwestern Mutual making up 62% of that amount, according to a Department of City Development report.
The 32-story office tower, which cost $450 million, opened in 2017.
The tax financing district allows Northwestern Mutual to recover $54 million over 25 years — amounting to 70% of the office tower's annual property tax bills.
Those cash grants are paying the higher costs that Northwestern Mutual says it faced to develop a 1.1 million-square-foot office tower downtown instead of constructing lower-rise office buildings at its suburban Franklin campus.
Department of City Development officials didn't immediately respond Friday to a request for comment on the Evers proposal.


text:
Q: How can I autoflush a Perl 6 filehande? There are a couple of answers for Perl 6 back in its Parrot days and they don't seem to work currently:

This is Rakudo version 2017.04.3 built on MoarVM version 2017.04-53-g66c6dda
  implementing Perl 6.c.

The answer to Does perl6 enable "autoflush" by default? says it's enabled by default (but that was 2011).
Here's a program I was playing with:
$*ERR.say: "1. This is an error";
$*OUT.say: "2. This is standard out";

And its output, which is an unfortunate order:
2. This is standard out
1. This is an error

So maybe I need to turn it on. There's How could I disable autoflush? which mentions an autoflush method:
$*ERR.autoflush = True;
$*ERR.say: "1. This is an error";
$*OUT.say: "2. This is standard out";

But that doesn't work:

No such method 'autoflush' for invocant of type 'IO::Handle'

I guess I could fake this myself by making my IO class that flushes after every output. For what it's worth, it's the lack of this feature that prevented me from using Perl 6 for a particular task today.
As a secondary question, why doesn't Perl 6 have this now, especially when it looks like it used to have it? How would you persaude a Perl 5 person this isn't an issue?

A: There was an output refactory very recently. With my local version of rakudo i can't get it to give the wrong order any more (2017.06-173-ga209082 built on MoarVM version 2017.06-48-g4bc916e)
There's now a :buffer argument to io handles that you can set to a number (or pass it as :!buffer) that will control this.
I assume the default if the output isatty is to not buffer.

A: This might not have worked yet when you asked the question, but:
$*ERR.out-buffer = False;
$*ERR.say: "1. This is an error";
$*OUT.say: "2. This is standard out";

It's a bit hard to find, but it's documented here.
Works for me in Rakudo Star 2017.10.

A: Rakudo doesn't support autoflush (yet). There's a note in 5to6-perlvar under the $OUTPUT_AUTOFLUSH entry.
raiph posted a comment elsewhere with a #perl6 IRC log search showing that people keep recommending autoflush and some other people keep saying it's not implemented. Since it's not a documented method (although flush is), I suppose we'll have to live without for a bit.

A: If you're primarily interested in STDOUT and STDERR, the following seems to reopen them without buffering (auto-flushed):
$*OUT = $*OUT.open(:!buffer);
$*ERR = $*ERR.open(:!buffer);

This isn't thoroughly tested yet, and I'm surprised this works. It's a funny API that lets you re-open an open stream.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Camp Chair, Folding: Civil War inspired Folding Leather Camp Chair, 8 oz. Italian Chocolate Brown Saddle Leather, Antique Brass Nail Head details, Stitched Seat, Condition consistent with age and wear of the piece. Sold as is.
Entire collection sold at reduced cost, fill out form below to get collection price.
Condition- Good, minor surface markings, varies between pieces. Complete form below for additional photographs of items condition.


Elena Baltacha has backed the decision not to allow Britain's tennis players to attend Friday's opening ceremony at the Olympic Park.
Team leader Paul Hutchins had requested late starts for all eight British players to give them the chance to attend the ceremony, but although none of them are playing until later on Saturday, it was decided a trip to Stratford would be detrimental to their chances.
Baltacha is looking forward to watching the spectacular show on TV instead at her base in Wimbledon, and she said: 'We're all playing tomorrow so that's fine.
'We're here to compete. It would have been really nice to go but we're here for a reason and that has to come first. If we were to go we wouldn't be back until late and that's not the best preparation.
'It is a shame but we can watch it on TV, that's what I'll be doing with my mum. And if we did go we wouldn't have seen it anyway, we would have been stuck in a room for quite a few hours.
Baltacha is likely to be the first British player in action on Saturday when she meets Hungary's Agnes Szavay in the first round of the women's singles in the third match on Court 18.
The British Olympic Association left it up to each sport to decide whether their athletes would attend the ceremony, and tennis is one of a number of sports that will not be present.


text:
Q: Expanding TR regardless of its TH in a table I have a dataset that has an optional last TD that is required to have a TH but regardless of that, I need the TRs to expand to show the background-color (fill it in).
Here's a fiddle showing my issue: http://jsfiddle.net/xkwCp/1/
I need the last three rows (the second tbody) to expand (organically or by JS). But it needs to read that there is no 3rd TD, and expand it as needed regardless of that TD, and without adding dummy TDs because it'll be generated dynamically.

A: I have an answer in jQuery, not CSS:
If you need only for a scenario where the last tbody is incomplete, you can use this
If you need something more generic, with tbodies (complete or incomplete) piled with any order  you can use this

A: You need to count the empty rows, then use rowspan on the last column. You cannot do this with CSS.


We want a Black Widow movie. We need a Black Widow movie. Supposedly it's on the table to happen, but when and HOW is the big question. That means, right now, we don't have ANY Black Widow movie.
Amazingly, that might soon change.
Over the weekend at San Diego Comic-Con, the guy who brought the Avengers to life (and not just that, also created Buffy, Dollhouse, AND Firefly), Joss Whedon, happened to mention that if given the opportunity, he'd love the chance to bring Black Widow to the big screen.
Pause to freak out for a few seconds.
Then, getting us even more on board, Whedon gushed about ScarJo for a few seconds.
DO YOU HEAR THAT, WORLD? Someone fast-track a Black Widow movie, and give Whedon the keys to the Black Widow kingdom. If you don't know anything about Whedon, let's start with something super basic: He loves strong, powerful female characters, and he's brought so many of them to life (ahem, Buffy, just to name one of a dozen).
A Black Widow movie is something we've long been dreaming of, so hopefully with Whedon's powerful Marvel-action-female-driven voice, it finally becomes a reality. Even if he doesn't direct it, it sounds like he can push it in the right direction towards the big screen.


text:
Protocoalele de la Almatî reprezintă declarațiile și principiile de fondare ale Comunității Statelor Independente (CSI).

Liderii Rusiei, Ucrainei și Belarusului au convenit prin Acordurile de la Belaveja din 8 decembrie 1991, desființarea Uniunii Sovietice și fondarea CSI. Pe 21 decembrie 1991, Armenia, Azerbaidjan, Belarus, Kazahstan, Kîrgîzstan, Republica Moldova, Rusia, Tadjikistan, Turkmenistan, Ucraina și Uzbekistan au încheiat Protocoalele de la Alma-Ata, alăturându-se CSI.

Protocolul a permis Federației Ruse (RSFSR) să-și asume statutul de membru ONU al Uniunii Sovietice, inclusiv sediul său permanent în Consiliul de Securitate al Națiunilor Unite.

Acordul asupra forțelor strategice
Încheiat între cei 11 membri ai Comunității Statelor Independente la 30 decembrie 1991.

Acord privind forțele armate și trupele de frontieră
Încheiat între membrii Comunității Statelor Independente la 30 decembrie 1991.

Referințe

Legături externe
Protocoalele de la Almatî (în rusă). Arhiva lui Egor Gaidar
Protocoalele de la Almatî (în rusă)
English translation

Comunitatea Statelor Independente
Dezmembrarea Uniunii Sovietice
1991 în Uniunea Sovietică
Tratate ale Armeniei
Tratate ale Rusiei
Tratate ale Ucrainei
Tratate internaționale

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


M E D I A ….!
Mostly the sponsored ones seek everywhere always the gutters.
Enthused & excited to inform that everything is dirty & in shatters.
Do this because to report peacefully things right & good, their TRP is at knots.
Invite they in debates participants cunningly & incite to talk what's sham & rot.
All they do sadly is not to inform news right but sinisterly disguise & misguide …!
Sad and sorry state of affairs indeed. No wonder people have lost trust in media news.
More focus is kept on highlighting sensational breaking news rather than promote genuine do gooders.


A Guide to buying your first pair of dance shoes.
After your first few classes, you will want to invest in a pair of dance shoes. After all, you wouldn't run, play tennis, play basketball or any other sport without having the proper footwear. Dance shoes can look very elegant and dressy but they do have a specific function. First, the sole of the shoe is covered in suede. This allows the shoe to move easily across the floor while still providing some traction. Additionally, depending on the type of shoe, they can be more flexible to allow full usage of your foot.
Men's shoes come in two styles--ballroom and latin shoes. Ballroom shoes look more like a traditional men's dress shoe. They come in leather or cloth and patent leather. For your first pair, I would not suggest patent leather. While they may look nice, they can stick to each other. (To avoid the issue of them sticking together, vasaline can be used on the surface of the shoe on the inside edges). Shoes should fit well and not be too lose. Keep in mind that they will stretch a little bit. Latin shoes are a bit more flexible than a ballroom shoe and do have a small heel on them.
Women's shoes also come in ballroom and latin styles. Ballroom shoes are closed toe and can come in a varying height and style of heel (up to 2.5 inches usually). Heel protectors should be bought and put on the shoe. These look like little soft plastic cups that fit snugly around the tip of the heel to protect the real heel of the shoe. These are sold based on the brand of shoe and style of the heel (slim, flare, etc.). This information is on the shoe box, or any sales person at a ballroom shoe store would be able to help you. The most common color ladies shoes come in is a flesh or tan color. These blend in with the floor and create an uninterupted leg line. Many other fun colors and designs are available as well. Ladies ballroom shoes may also have a strap across the top of the foot or may not. This is a personal preference, but clear bands can be bought and used to keep strapless shoes from slipping off. The fit should be snug, but not too tight. They will stretch some, but not too much.
Ladies latin shoes are open toed and what we would refer to as "strappy" shoes. These are more flexible than ballroom shoes and the heel can be as high as 3 inches. Again they mainly come in tan but many other colors and designs can be found. The same rules apply to heel protectors as I talked about with ballroom shoes. Latin shoes will stretch more than ballroom shoes, and the thinner the straps, the more they will stretch.
There is a third type of ballroom shoe for ladies and this is what you will see a lot of the female teachers wearing. They are called "teaching" or "coaching" shoes and look more like a man's latin shoe than a ladies shoe. These are a much lower heel and are usually black. If you really do not want to buy a pair of heels or feel uncomfortable in them, this is a great alternative.
Many websites sell dance shoes but I would recommend buying your first pair in person. Your teacher can direct you to a local dance supply store that sells ballroom shoes. Do not be afraid to ask the salesperson for help. Many people are very excited to get their first pair of dance shoes and are amazed at how much easier they make dancing!


text:
Q: Problems uploading a binary serialized file The idea of my program is to allow the user to save his data in a cloud. The data is stored in binary serialized files.
Serialization Code looks like so:
FileStream Stream = new FileStream(..., FileMode.Create); // create stream
BinaryFormatter Formatter = new BinaryFormatter(); // create formatter
Formatter.Serialize(Stream, ObjectToSerialize); // serialize
Stream.Close();

The Problem is that when I upload the serialized file, with the following code:
FtpWebRequest Request = (FtpWebRequest)WebRequest.Create(new Uri(...));
Request.Method = WebRequestMethods.Ftp.UploadFile;

Request.Credentials = new NetworkCredential(..., ...);
string Path = System.IO.Path.GetDirectoryName(...;
StreamReader SourceStream = new StreamReader(Path);
Request.UseBinary = true;
byte[] FileContents = Encoding.Default.GetBytes(SourceStream.ReadToEnd());
SourceStream.Close();
Request.ContentLength = FileContents.Length;

Stream RequestStream = Request.GetRequestStream();
RequestStream.Write(FileContents, 0, FileContents.Length);
RequestStream.Close();

FtpWebResponse Response = (FtpWebResponse)Request.GetResponse();

Response.Close();

the file encoding changes (I am not sure about that.. if the encoding is the problem but I think so) and I am not able to deserialize the file anymore, exceptions occure. Do you have a idea how to do not damage the file?
Best Regards!

A: Encoding only applies to text, and you're dealing with a binary file here. You should not attempt to read it as a string. The "encoding changed" because you are using Encoding.Default which depends on the current configuration of your operating system.
Just change the code to:
string Path = System.IO.Path.GetDirectoryName(...);
// StreamReader SourceStream = new StreamReader(Path);
// Request.UseBinary = true;
byte[] FileContents = File.ReadAllBytes(Path);
// SourceStream.Close();

if you want to read an entire binary file in memory.


text:
Q: python3 extract string between two strings in a txt file I am new to Python. I am trying to extract one string ("concluded that our disclosure controls were effective as of") from a txt file ("infile.txt"). The file is relatively large, and I need to look for the above string in one particular section (between the "ITEM & nbsp;9A" and the "ITEM & nbsp;9B"). An example of such section follows:
ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures  STYLE="margin-top:6px;margin-bottom:0px; text-indent:4%">Under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (Exchange Act)), as of the end of the period covered by this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving their objectives and management necessarily applies its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures. Based on such evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of September 28, 2012.

Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
This Annual Report does not include a report of management’s assessment regarding internal control over financial reporting or an attestation report of the company’s registered public accounting firm due to a transition period established by rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission for newly public companies.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 13a-15(f) under the Exchange Act) during the quarter ended September 28, 2012, that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION.

If the section has the desired string "concluded that our disclosure controls were effective as of" (the above section has it aprox. in the middle), then I would like to print a "1" in a separate "output.csv" file, if it does not, print "not found". The starting point of the section does not always coincide with the start of a line. I am sorry but could not figure out how to start.... I am using Python 3.6.
Thank you very much in advance!

A: You can use regular expressions to extract text between a given opener and closer:
import re

opener = re.escape(r"ITEM 9A")
closer = re.escape(r"ITEM 9B")

You can look over the extracts by with re.finditer and then filter the extracts with the target string using the in-operator:
target_string = "concluded that our disclosure controls were effective as of"
for mo in re.finditer(opener + '(.*?)' + closer, inputstring, re.DOTALL):
    extract = mo.group(1)
    if target_string in extract:
        ...

Hopefully, this is enough to get you started :-)

A: You can use re.findall:
import re

the_data = re.findall("ITEM 9A. (.*?)", string_data_from_file)

if len(the_data) >0:
    print "1"

else:
    print "Not found"


The family of a teenager whose body was pulled from a lake over the weekend have paid tribute.
Jack Morrisson had been reported missing on Friday, December 16, the following day his body was found in Sutton-at-Hone, near Dartford.
"Jack you were like a beautiful angel that we were sent. We have been so lucky to have you and you were amazing.
"Although our hearts are broken that your life was short we want to celebrate your life that we were so blessed to be a part of.
"You were like our little golden boy, your life was so charmed and everything you wanted seemed to come to you. Your love of football was answered by playing for Volenti Football Academy and your weekends were spent on your one true love, fishing. You have brought so much joy to us and we feel so blessed to have had you.
"Although your life was short it was full; you had achieved so much and were on a path to success.
"Your life was not a waste and the last year you had become so funny, constantly making us laugh and thank you God for that, as we now have so many stories to share of your cheeky jokes.
"That is what is keeping us strong, the thought of your happy laughing face that we love more than words can say. Our lives will never be the same now, without you here with us and although we never thought there really were angels, now we do as it's the only explanation for such a beautiful amazing boy.
"We love you so much Jack and we can't even begin to put in to words the love and the pride you have given to us being in your life. Thank you so, so much for letting us be part of your life, our perfect angel Jack, AKA the cheekiest, funniest, strongest amazing boy we have ever had the pleasure to have known.
The family went on to thank the emergency services and the Dartford and District Angling Preservation Society.
Police are treating teenager's death as non-suspicious and a report is being prepared for the coroner.