A. This isn't something new…it's been going on for a long time. Bingo players don't want you to touch their cards or their daubers; domino players don't want you to straighten their double 6's; and you wouldn't think of touching your poker buddies' cards. It might have something to do with superstition….but there have also been some mistakes when players exchange for a Joker in exposures….like replacing a 1Bam for a Flower, or a West for a North. Please don't take it personally.
When I teach Mah Jongg I tell the beginning students that no one should ever touch anyone else's tiles or racks. When you want to exchange a tile for a Joker you extend the tile out to the player with the Joker and politely ask for her Joker. You do not take it off her rack yourself.
Why do I teach this way and why am I so adamant about this rule? As it was explained to me, all of this prevents any hint of cheating. I'm not sure that I think too much about that aspect because I would never play with anyone who is suspected of cheating. I think I am just superstitious about this! So, don't touch my tiles and I won't touch yours!
This entry was posted in Mah Jongg and Me and tagged dealer, east, Gladys Grad, Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, mah jongg, mah jongg madness, mahjong on March 6, 2019 by Mah Jongg and Me.
You probably know that I adore both Gladys Grad, the Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, and Lynn Chorn, the owner of the fabulous Mah Jongg website, www.wherethewindsblow.com. What a great delight today for me to see that Gladys has written a wonderful article for Lynn and her website. And it is really an informative and interesting article – one that all of you will want to read, especially for those of you interested in tournament play. Much thanks to Gladys and Lynn for always providing us with such wonderful Mah Jongg information!
This entry was posted in Mah Jongg and Me and tagged Gladys Grad, Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, Lynn Chorn, mah jongg, mahjong, www.wherethewindsblow.com on October 21, 2016 by Mah Jongg and Me.
On September 27th I posted a question from a reader of this blog – she asked what she should do with someone who was cheating in their friendly (and small) neighborhood games. I gave my response but so many of you were kind enough to chime in. I received more responses than I could possibly re-post but here are a few of them. Be sure to scroll all the way through to the very last response as that one is from the wonderful and very knowledgeable Gladys Grad.
I would encourage everyone else to count her tiles continuously, and if she starts moving the discards do as suggested in the blog. If she doesn't figure it out, then you need to be direct.
Very awkward for sure but cheating is cheating and can't be tolerated even in a neighborhood game. Just keep declaring her dead. That should stop it.
Hard to believe that this person thinks she is getting away with cheating. Maybe it's the thrill of thinking she's getting away with it…living on the edge. I think Gladys and Ann are right on. Many players get annoyed when discards are moved around because they are visual and remember tiles by their placement on the table. Also, I've played in a tournament where hands in front of racks is not allowed. Perhaps you could just say that moving the tiles is distracting and during the next game have one of your players intentionally get caught with 14 tiles on their rack and call her dead. This would serve as fair warning. If the group is playing with loose rules, this could all be presented as an effort by the group to tighten up the game to conform with NMJL rules. However it is handled, it should be stopped before someone loses their patience and creates hurt feelings. If she can't play by the group's standards, she will probably find somewhere else to play.
Cheaters don't just cheat in MJ. I broke up a game due to discovering a player cheating. That's so wrong. Either call her dead every time she had 14 or call her out on it.
It is an awkward situation but I wouldn't want to play with her & suggest telling her outright to stop.
I have to agree with the 1st suggestion about leaving all tiles where they are & if you are found to have 14 tiles you are declared dead. She must comply or no longer play with the group. What a shame. The game is supposed to be a fun social get together.
To me, there is never any reason to continue playing with somebody who cheats. If she needs the money that badly, take up a collection and put it in a good bye card.
Confront, poor character probably in other areas.
Fool me once; shame on you. Fool me twice; shame on me.
I played in a game for a few years, where two of the ladies ALWAYS made the correct bet. They never wanted to use a better (said friends should trust friends). Well, this friend got tired of it and I just left the game. It did end a friendship. But then again, what kind of a friend cheats for a quarter!
I think the suggestions are very diplomatic and should work to stop her behavior but I agree with the response that said the issue runs deeper and I would keep my eye on her in other social situations that she may participate in , such as bridge, etc.
It's unfortunate that someone is desperate enough to make a hand that they would cheat! Tell her you made a new table rule where all hands must be behind the rack because it's distracting to the other players. Personally, I find it annoying when a player has a need to constantly move the tiles on the table.
I would confront her as well. she has no problem taking advantage of her "friends" and cheating. then i would ask her to find another table. believe me…if she cheats in mah jong, it goes deeper than that.
And, finally…from Gladys Grad, the Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, comes the definitive response: The hardest thing we face in our tournaments is "firing" someone who has been found cheating. These players are usually good-natured, knowledgeable players….and come to these events with their friends. This makes it particularly tricky because we don't want to embarrass them in front of their friends. In my previous profession, it was really hard when I had to fire employees; but dis-inviting a MJ player is worse. We warn them (after a thorough "investigation," of course) …and tell them they can finish the tournament if they wish, so as not to embarrass them further; but they are never allowed back in another tournament of ours. Of course, they are always watched if they decide to play to the end; and their scores are not counted. I do not envy your very difficult position. Your situation is literally in your home. Ann's solution may be the only way.
Much thanks to all of you for your responses!
This entry was posted in Mah Jongg and Me and tagged Gladys Grad, Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, mah jongg, mahjong on October 17, 2016 by Mah Jongg and Me.
Oh, boy – today a package arrived from Sheila and Gil Linderman. Housed in a beautiful bag, I found two Mah Jongg racks specifically designed for Siamese Mah Jongg…BRILLIANT! Check out how the tiles play out on these special racks – I am loving how clever they are! Gil is the wonderful Glady Grad's brother and Sheila is his wife – the two of them are both are very talented and have provided wonderful additions to our Mah Jongg accessories. These racks are available now and if you are interested in purchasing them (BTW, a great holiday gift for your Mah Jongg-playing friends!), contact Gil and Sheila at glinderman@aol.com.
Now that I am playing Siamese Mah Jongg using these racks, I don't know how I ever lived without them!
This entry was posted in Mah Jongg and Me and tagged Gil Linderman, Gladys Grad, Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, mah jongg, mahjong, Siamese on October 15, 2016 by Mah Jongg and Me.
IT'S ALWAYS TIME TO PLAY MAH JONGG!
NERVOUS ABOUT PLAYING IN A TOURNAMENT?
For those players who stress about so-called "tournament speed,"…..please don't let it bother you. We should all be playing at least 4 games in an hour in our friendly home games. (Many play 5 games in that time.) Tournaments sometimes have a 55 minute round. Plenty of time to complete all 4 of your games; even if you take some time to figure out your hands. It's rare for players to go over the time limit.
And remember, only the first game in a tournament is daunting….after that, it's just a group of players – playing the game we all love. And it's a lot of fun.
How long does it take your group to play a game? Let me know.
This entry was posted in Mah Jongg and Me and tagged Gladys Grad, Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, mah jongg, mahjong on August 30, 2016 by Mah Jongg and Me.
Gladys Grad, the Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, is always thinking of ways to improve our beloved game. In her October newsletter Gladys listed some ideas to add to your games at home. As she notes, these are NOT sanctioned by the National Mah Jongg League (NMJL) or by Mah Jongg Master Point tournaments, but they might be something new to add to your social games. Have any of you incorporated these ideas into your games? Or do you have any other ideas? Let me know and I will post them. BTW, I know the controversy surrounding 'picking ahead" and I agree with you!
7) JOKERS-IN Everyone starts with 1 Joker.
8) BUY A JOKER. 4 Jokers are left out of the walls. The remaining 4 Jokers are mixed into the walls as usual. After East throws out the starting tile, but before a first exposure is made by each individual player, and before they pick to begin their next turn….a player can "buy" a Joker for $$0.50 or 1.00 (which is added to the winner's pot). Players are limited to buying only one (1) Joker, and ONLY if they DON'T ALREADY HAVE A JOKER IN THEIR HAND. Remember to discard a tile after you've "bought" your Joker to begin your turn. Honesty prevails here. You can NOT "buy" a Joker for Mah Jongg. If all 4 of these Jokers (1 each) aren't bought by each player, none of the remaining of the 4 Jokers can be placed back in the wall for other players to pick.
9) EXCHANGE A JOKER FOR A SYMBOL TILE IN AN EXPOSURE (instead of vice versa). This would help if someone exposed 3 or 4 of the tiles you needed for a single or pair.
11) Take a Clue from the CHINESE game. If you have 4 Flowers in your hand, and the numbers on the Folwers are consecutive 1,2,3,4, or SPR, SUM, AUT, WIN, you will get double the payment for your MJ hand, over and above your regular payment. You are also able to exchange a flower in it's exposure, if you pick it and exchange it yourself.
12) The NMJL has increased, and subsequently decreased, the number of Flowers several times from its inception in 1937 to 1971. Then they added 2 Jokers to the game in 1960; and up to 8 Jokers in 1967.
Creativity and evolution are the building blocks for almost any game to gain in popularity and continuing success. Do you have any ideas you currently use, or you'd like to see implemented in your own game…or an idea you wish would be considered by the NMJL for the official game?
This entry was posted in Mah Jongg and Me and tagged Atomic, futures, Gladys Grad, Grand Master of American-Style Mah Jongg Tournaments, hot wall cold wall, mah jongg, mahjong, National Mah Jongg League, nmjl, picking ahead on November 5, 2015 by Mah Jongg and Me.


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Home → → Issues Surrounding the China-Japan Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism
By Xiaobo Liu
Issues Surrounding the China-Japan Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism
Sep. 24, 2018 | | 0 comments
The China-Japan Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism is a crisis management mechanism established by the defense departments of both countries to prevent friction or conflict in their frontline forces of the sea and air. In May 2018, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang arrived in Tokyo to attend the 7th China-Japan-ROK Leaders' Meeting and pay an official visit to Japan. As one of the important achievements of the high-level meeting, the two defense departments signed a memorandum on the Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism and decided to activate the Mechanism on June 8. According to the previous public statements of the two countries, the purpose of the establishment of the Mechanism is to jointly control the maritime crisis and promote peace, friendship, and cooperation in the East China Sea. Recently, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stated that he is striving to officially visit China this year. The Mechanism has added positive factors to the transformation of China-Japan relations this year.
The Origin and Consultation Process of the Mechanism
The Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism originated from an international agreement in peacetime to prevent accidents of maritime and air forces, and to manage the crisis. It can be traced back to the Agreement on Preventing Accidents on and above the High Seas signed by the United States and the Soviet Union in 1972 and the Agreement on the Prevention of Dangerous Military Activities signed in 1989. Based on the US-Soviet agreement, 10 countries including the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Norway, Spain, the Netherlands, Canada, Greece, and Portugal signed a bilateral agreement with the former Soviet Union to prevent dangerous incidents at sea. After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Turkey, Japan, and South Korea signed a maritime military security agreement with Russia.
China signed the Agreement on Establishing a Consultation Mechanism for Strengthening Maritime Military Safety with the United States in 1998. It is an agreement to prevent and control maritime and airspace accidents and ensure military and air security. In 2014, China and the United States signed two Memorandums on Enhancing Military Confidence Building Measures for the Rules of Behavior for Safety of Air and Maritime Encounters and the Major Military Action Notification Mechanism. In the same year, the Western Pacific Naval Symposium (WPNS) approved the Code of Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES) in Qingdao. The aim of these agreements and mechanisms is to promote the establishment of international maritime and airspace military rules in peacetime, establish a rules-based maritime and air force operational order, avoid dangerous events at sea and air, ensure the safety of ships, aircraft and crew, and establish a mechanism for communication which will play an important role in effectively managing potential crises.
In the long period after the World War II, there was very little military interaction between China and Japan, and the issue of military and air security was ignored. At the end of the 20th century, with the increased power of the Chinese naval and air force, the number of maritime and air forces transiting the Japanese archipelago through the many channels in and out of the Western Pacific gradually increased, and the sovereignty dispute between China and Japan over the Diaoyu Islands and disputes over the jurisdiction of sea area emerged, Japan began to closely track, monitor and reconnoiter China's maritime and airspace forces. Encounters and dangerous interactions between their front line maritime and air forces in the East China Sea and the Western Pacific have increased. Affected by historical issues, China and Japan have had little mutual trust in the defense field, and there is deep hostility between their maritime and airspace forces. When the warships and planes of the two countries meet, there are frequent dangerous critical operations such as tracking and anti-tracking, surveillance and counter-monitoring, dangerous approaching, fire-controlled radar emission, and even the launch of jamming ammos by fighters. Most of the implementers of these dangerous actions are the Japanese maritime and airspace forces. The Japanese actions have seriously impeded the navigation safety and activities of Chinese ships and aircraft, which can easily lead to misunderstandings and misjudgments between two sides, and even lead to dangerous incidents and armed conflicts.
In 2007, Premier Wen Jiabao visited Japan and reached a consensus with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on establishing a maritime liaison mechanism. The purpose of this mechanism is to prevent accidental conflicts between the maritime and air forces of the two sides, to effectively deal with and control maritime and airspace emergencies, and to prevent accidents from escalating into military conflicts which can affect the political and diplomatic relations between the two countries. The main content of the mechanism is to establish maritime and airspace force communication and operation procedures between the two countries, and to establish communication and consultation mechanisms for the two defense departments. The mechanism mainly emphasizes Crisis Prevention and Crisis Management.
From April 2008 to June 2012, the two sides conducted three rounds of consultations on the mechanism and reached three points of consensus: first, the need to set up a hotline between the two defense departments; second, the need to unify the radio frequency and language of two countries' ships and aircraft; and third, the need for the two defense departments to conduct regular exchanges. Afterwards, influenced by Japan's Nationalization of the Diaoyu Islands, there was great damage to bilateral relations and political mutual trust between China and Japan, and the establishment of a liaison mechanism was therefore stagnant.
In January 2015, the liaison mechanism expert group consultation was resumed in Tokyo. The two sides reached a consensus on four aspects. First, they confirmed the purpose, composition, operation methods, and related technical specifications of the mechanism. Second, the two sides agreed to change the name from the Maritime Liaison Mechanism to Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism. This change would be more conducive to bilateral exchanges and consultations on military and maritime security issues. Third, the two sides believed that the basic technical conditions for the commencement of operations of the Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism are already in place, and agreed to start the mechanism as soon as possible. Fourth, they reached consensus on improving communication rules. However, after the mechanism was delayed, and the main obstacle was the difficulty faced by the two sides to reach an agreement on the applicable sea area of the mechanism. The draft proposed by the Japanese side advocates that the territorial sea and airspace are not within the scope of the mechanism. The Japanese government believed that if the territorial sea and airspace are included in the scope of the mechanism, this might indicate to China that Chinese warships or aircraft may contact Japanese sides through the mechanism even if they invade the Diaoyu Islands. The consultation process has been deadlocked until December 2017, when China and Japan reached a consensus in the High-level Consultation on Ocean Affairs: "The two sides have made positive progress in establishing and launching the Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism of the defense department." According to Japanese media reports, the scope of the mechanism will focus in the direction that does not involve the territorial sea boundary. The two sides hence have finally reached a consensus on the mechanism. After 10 years of hardship, this reflects the intricateness of China-Japan relations and the military security issues between China and Japan.
The Dangerous Interactions between China and Japan
The current military interaction between China and Japan is mainly in the East China Sea and the Western Pacific. Due to historical issues, disputes of China-Japan Diaoyu Islands sovereignty and jurisdiction of the East China Sea, and structural strategic contradictions between China and the US-Japan military alliance, China-Japan military mutual trust is relatively low. Both sides' military and air forces were regarded as potential targets when they encountered, and these were not benign interactions.
First, the dangerous interactions caused by the overlap of Air Defense Identification Zones (ADIZs) should be discussed. Japan began to implement its ADIZ in 1969, and its ADIZ is an annular band-shaped area surrounding Japan. In the direction of the East China Sea, the Japanese ADIZ is only 130 kilometers away from the coastline of China's Zhejiang Province, and even covers the Chinese territory of the Diaoyu Islands, as well as China's oil and gas facilities in the East China Sea. In 2010, the Japanese Defense Ministry extended the ADIZ two nautical miles west of the Yonaguni Island airspace, closer to Taiwan Island. Japan monitors the ADIZ mainly through early warning aircraft, reconnaissance aircraft, and land-based air-to-air warning radar. When Chinese aircraft enter the Japanese ADIZ, the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) generally launches fighters to carry out tracking and surveillance and to implement countermeasures.
On November 23, 2013, the Chinese government announced the designation of its East China Sea ADIZ and issued the Aircraft Identification Rules for the East China Sea ADIZ. Aircraft in the East China Sea ADIZ are required to notify the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Civil Aviation Administration of the flight plan. For aircraft that do not cooperate with the identification or refuse to obey the instructions, the Chinese armed forces will take defensive emergency measures. The Japanese government immediately announced that it could not accept China's East China Sea ADIZ, and Japan has frequently carried out long-term close tracking and surveillance of Chinese fighters performing normal routine patrol missions. On the same day when Chinese announced its ADIZ, two JASDF F-15 fighters approached and monitored the Chinese patrol aircraft for 34 minutes, and the nearest distance was only about 10 meters.
Table 1. Emergency launches of Japanese fighters to react to Chinese aircraft in the Japanese ADIZ
Source: Japanese Defense White Papers
Second, there is a need to discuss the dangerous interactions caused by weak military mutual trust between the two sides. In 2013, Japan claimed that Chinese ships had used fire control radar to illuminate the Japanese maritime and airspace force. On January 19, 2013, Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera claimed that a Chinese Navy Jiangkai-class frigate (type 054) used its anti-aircraft missile control radar to illuminate a Japanese helicopter which had been launched from the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) destroyer Oonami in the East China Sea. On January 30, 2013, a Chinese Jiangwei II (053H3G) frigate used fire control radar to illuminate the JMSDF destroyer Yuudachi when the distance between two ships was only 3 kilometers. Itsunori Onodera said that the Japanese frigate had triggered a warning of impending battle. This is something that has never happened between the maritime forces of the two countries so far. In response to this matter, the Chinese Ministry of National Defense responded that the Japanese statement was completely inconsistent with the facts. The Chinese side refuted the close-range surveillance, and they claimed that interference of Japanese forces had jeopardized the safety of Chinese ships, which was the root cause of the maritime security problem between the two countries.
On May 24, 2014, during a Sino-Russian joint military exercise in the East China Sea, two Japanese Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) aircraft intruded into the Chinese East China Sea ADIZ to carry out reconnaissance. Chinese military aircraft were forced to take necessary measures. The Chinese Ministry of National Defense stated that the Japanese military's dangerous actions were serious violations of international law, which could have easily led to misunderstandings and misjudgments, and may have even led to airborne accidents.
On June 17, 2016, two JASDF F-15 fighters approached and used fire control radar to illuminate two Chinese Su-30 fighters when the Chinese fighters were patrolling in the East China Sea ADIZ. The Chinese fighters responded decisively, taking measures such as tactical maneuvers, and the Japanese fighters escaped after ejecting infrared interference ammo. A spokesman of the Chinese Ministry of National Defense pointed out that the provocative actions of Japanese fighters could have easily led to airborne accidents, endangering the safety of personnel on both sides and undermining regional peace and stability. Although the Japanese later denied using fire-control radar, both sides confirmed that their fighters had confronted each other. Foreign media reported that this was the first time that both countries' air forces had conducted simulated dogfights since World War II.
On December 10, 2016, two JASDF F-15 fighters performed close-range interference on six Chinese fighters and launched jamming ammo when Chinese fighters went to the Western Pacific via the Miyako Strait for training. A spokesman of the Chinese Ministry of National Defense stated that the actions of the Japanese aircraft were dangerous, unprofessional, and undermined the freedom of overflight granted by international law.
Fire-control radar is a radar device installed on a ship or aircraft to provide precise target information and guidance for artillery and missiles. It emits electromagnetic waves to target, which means that the ship's fire control system has been activated and has been aimed at the target. Therefore, a cannon or missile can be fired to attack a target at any time. Fire-control radar exposure is a very hostile behavior. During the Cold War, the surface ships of the United States and the Soviet Union often conducted similar interactions in close confrontation. Jammer ammo has been used by fighters as defensive tactics to lead enemy missiles away from real targets. The use of fire-control radar or jamming ammo is essentially a fighting action. It is indeed a very dangerous act in peacetime, which is likely to lead to misunderstandings and misjudgments by both parties.
Third, there is a need to discuss the dangerous interactions caused by military confrontations over the Diaoyu Islands. On September 11, 2012, the Japanese government announced that it would nationalize the Diaoyu Islands, which triggered a strong protest from the Chinese government. Chinese government ships began to conduct normalized law enforcement patrols near the Diaoyu Islands, and occasionally entered the territorial sea of the Diaoyu Islands. In response, the JSDF and the Japan Coast Guard continuously strengthened their response to Chinese ships and aircraft. The confrontations between the maritime and air forces of the two countries have intensified, and the risk of incidents has been rising. In December 2012, the Japan Coast Guard established a Diaoyu Islands Special Guard Force. In April 2016, the Japan Coast Guard established a Diaoyu Islands Special Force which included 12 large patrol vessels to deal with official Chinese ships. In June 2016, the Japanese government made it clear that Japan would resolutely prevent Chinese warships from entering the 12 nautical miles of the Diaoyu Islands. The Japanese government also called this the red line that must not be retreated.
On December 13, 2012, a Y-12 aircraft of the State Oceanic Administration of China went to the Diaoyu Islands airspace to carry out a law enforcement patrol. The JASDF immediately dispatched eight F-15 fighters and one E-2C early warning aircraft to respond. On June 9, 2016, a Chinese Navy frigate sailed into the contiguous zone of the Diaoyu Islands. The JMSDF dispatched a warship to confront the Chinese warship. In January 2018, the Japanese destroyers Ooyodo and Oonami carried out tracking and surveillance of the Chinese frigate Yiyang and a submarine near the Diaoyu Islands.
The Content and Role of the Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism
According to the Japanese Defense Ministry and Japanese media reports, the China-Japan Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism has three main contents: the establishment of direct communication procedures between the defense departments, the establishment of a hotline between the defense departments, and annual meetings. The Chief of Staff of the JSDF, Admiral Katsutoshi Kawano, said that it is very meaningful to start the mechanism from the perspective of avoiding unforeseen conflicts between the Chinese army and the JSDF.
First, ships and aircraft of the two countries can use the direct communication at sea and in the air. Ships and aircraft of the two countries may use specific radio frequencies, signals, and acronyms to communicate in accordance with the CUES and the Convention on International Civil Aviation. Both parties can prevent incidents and avoid tensions by affirmations of each other's intentions. As a member of the WPNS, the Chinese Navy and the JMSDF have been implementing the CUES on a voluntary basis. This rule is an international maritime and airspace force communication and operation procedure. However, the CUES is not a binding rule. The JSDF has been complaining for long time that when tracking Chinese aircraft that have been flying in the surrounding airspace of Japan, its attempt to use CUES to call the aircraft have often ended in vain, as there is hardly any response from the latter. The current Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism should be consistent with the CUES at the technical level, but as an agreement signed by the two countries, the mechanism should be binding. The Japanese Defense Ministry also stated that the Chinese military will definitely abide by the Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism. Through communication, the JSDF will find it easier to understand the intentions of the operating forces of the Chinese army.
The establishment and active engagement of the Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism between China and Japan reflects the willingness of the two countries to control differences and manage crises.
Second, a hotline for liaison will be established between the two defense departments this year. As the main content of the mechanism, the Chinese and Japanese defense departments set up a hotline for the first time, which is often called a direct telephone. This is the fifth defense department direct telephone line between China and foreign countries. Before that, China-Russian and China-US hotlines had been established in 2008, and China-Vietnam and China-South Korean hotlines were established in 2015.
With the direct telephone line, the senior officials of the two defense departments can conduct normal communications, exchange policy intentions, and promote mutual understanding at the policy level. The direct telephone line will play an important role in crisis management. At present, the Japanese side has said that the hotline is likely to be set up in the office of the Chief of Staff of the JSDF, but the Chinese side is still uncertain.
Third, the two defense departments will hold a special meeting every year in turn, and the first meeting will be held in 2018. Similar to the China-US Maritime Military Safety Consultation Mechanism, they are also determined to hold an annual meeting each year. The topics of the annual meeting will include the proposed agenda for their maritime and air forces, such as search and rescue, communication procedures, and interpretation of rules for navigation and flight, to avoid incidents at sea, etc. In the Rules of Behavior for Safety of Air and Maritime Encounters between China and the US, an annual assessment meeting was held to review the application of the agreement in the previous year and to discuss possible revisions and improvements. Therefore, the possible topic of the annual meeting of the China-Japan Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism could be to conduct an annual assessment of the implementation and to propose amendments.
Insufficient and Future Development of the Mechanism
From the consultations in 2007 to the present, the mechanism that has been signed implies compromises between the two sides, constituting inherent shortcomings. First, there is a need to discuss the lack of air operation rules in the mechanism. The mechanism stipulates that the parties will regulate communication and operations between ships and aircraft in accordance with the CUES and the Convention on International Civil Aviation. The main contents of the CUES include the rules of operation, communication, and Code of Signals of the maritime forces. The CUES instruct how to establish communication, maintain a safe distance, avoid dangerous actions, and to transfer signals easily and quickly when the maritime and air forces are encountered. The Convention on International Civil Aviation was originally a regulation of civil aircraft. Military aircraft can be referenced for implementation, but the Convention cannot cover the characteristics of military aircraft. Especially in military aircraft interactions that include air reconnaissance, tracking, surveillance, and interception and expelling during peacetime, more professional rules are needed to regulate and prevent dangerous incidents. In this field, the Annex III Rules of Behavior for Safety of Air-to-Air Encounters of the Memorandum of Understanding on the Rules of Behavior for Safety of Air and Maritime Encounters can be used as a reference and supplement to the China-Japan Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism.
Second, there is a need to discuss the scope of application of the mechanism and any hidden potential problems. According to Japanese media reports, the official documents of the mechanism did not specify whether the scope of application includes territorial sea and territorial airspace. This may be a compromise agreement between the two countries on whether the mechanism can be applied near the Diaoyu Islands. Such a vague representation method leaves room for interpretation. As the Japanese control the 12 nautical miles off the Diaoyu Islands more effectively than the Chinese, Japan hopes to take unrestrained and drastic measures to expel Chinese government ships and warships that have entered the territorial waters of the Diaoyu Islands. This is the main reason why Japan is trying to avoid the application of the mechanism within 12 nautical miles off the Diaoyu Islands. At present, the frequent confrontations between China and Japan within 12 nautical miles off the Diaoyu Islands is the objective. Under the agreement that both countries do not want to escalate the situation into armed conflict, there is still a realistic need of applying the mechanism within 12 nautical miles off the Diaoyu Islands. In the future, with the change of dominance in maritime and airspace power between China and Japan, as well as changes in the effective control of the area near the Diaoyu Islands, the interpretation of the application of the mechanism may change.
Third, there is a need to discuss the absence of applying the subject of the mechanism to the Coast Guard. At present, the confrontation near the Diaoyu Islands mainly exists between the Coast Guards of the two countries, but the mechanism has not been applied to the Coast Guard. In the future, there will be a challenge to continue ensuring that the mechanism plays a practical role in managing the dispute on the Diaoyu Islands between the two countries. In January 2018, the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the Chinese Communist Party assumed command of the armed police force. Earlier in March, command authority over the China Coast Guard (CCG) was transferred from the Public Security Department to the Armed Police Force, putting the CCG under command of the CMC. This change produced another confusing issue. Are the operations of the CCG law enforcement activities or military operations? Is the mechanism applicable to the CCG? Do the two Coast Guards have equal legal status? How do the two sides avoid the difficulties of implementing the mechanism?
The establishment and active engagement of the Maritime and Airspace Liaison Mechanism between China and Japan reflects the willingness of the two countries to control differences and manage crises. For the two countries, the Diaoyu Islands sovereignty dispute and maritime delimitation disputes are difficult to solve in a short term. The most important thing at present is to maintain restraint and avoid incidents of armed conflict that will damage regional security. This is a realistic and wise choice for both countries.
Xiaobo Liu
Captain (decommissioned) Xiaobo Liu is Associate Research Fellow at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, Haikou, China. His research focuses on maritime security policy, law of the sea and naval research.
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UK Conservative MPs revolt over home secretary's migrant 'failure'
UK Conservative MPs revolt over home secretary's migrant 'failure' /node/1976916/world
Britain's Home Secretary Priti Patel makes a statement on the 'Small boats incident in the Channel', in the House of Commons. (File/AFP)
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Inaction placing people at risk, say critics
LONDON: UK Home Secretary Priti Patel is facing new pressure from members of her own party over the failure of an Afghan resettlement program, which has not opened more than three months after being launched.
It comes as debate rages in Britain over the deaths of 27 migrants in the English Channel earlier this week.
Several Conservative MPs privately demanded that Patel take action on the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme, The Guardian reported.
They said that UK government inaction was placing Afghans at "deadly risk" and leaving vulnerable targets in the country at the mercy of the Taliban.
Damian Green, the former immigration minister, has called for a new approach to migration that is "realistic and compassionate."
In an opinion piece, he criticized the "blame game" between the UK and France over deaths at sea, and called on UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron to work together to solve the crisis.
He said: "Now is not the time for displays of wounded amour propre in either language. Careless talk costs lives."
Afghans are well represented in the body of migrants on the French coast who are attempting to travel to the UK. Government critics in the UK have argued that opening a legal route to entry would help avoid deaths at sea.
Rory Stewart, the former international development secretary, said the problems associated with the Afghan resettlement scheme were "surmountable," but that the opportunity for helping vulnerable people was slipping away.
"We have a narrow window to get people out. At the moment, very strangely, the Taliban is prepared to permit people out. That won't be true forever. It's very likely at some point they'll start taking more drastic measures.
"We have a deep moral obligation. These people, who are profoundly vulnerable, were told they were going to be helped. It's just astonishing that they haven't done so. This sort of program, actually, is the kind of thing that is the good alternative to these dangerous, unplanned routes. It moves people safely, but it's also the way of ensuring that the most vulnerable are prioritized."
An opinion poll found that just 18 percent of voters thought Patel was handling the migrant crisis effectively. In the opposite camp, 62 percent believed she was handling it "badly" or "very badly."
Caroline Nokes, the former Conservative immigration minister, said: "This scheme needs to be up and running. Afghans here with family still in Afghanistan were given hope when the scheme was announced but are desperately worried that time is running out to get their family members to safety."
Iain Duncan Smith, the former Conservative leader, said: "We're all supportive of stopping illegal immigration, but these other routes are the key to getting things properly done. This needs to be open and resolved, particularly because of Afghanistan and obligations to the people there. This week illustrates that."
The Law Society has warned that lawyers and judges who worked to prosecute Taliban members over the past decade "are all targets while still in Afghanistan."
Marina Brilman,the society's international human rights adviser, said the scheme might not be ready by the end of the year.
She added: "Most judges, prosecutors and lawyers who helped to consolidate the rule of law in Afghanistan are Afghan nationals. They never made it on to the UK government's evacuation list. When the last UK flight left Kabul airport, they were left stranded. Especially women.
"They send us desperate pleas for help and pass on handwritten death threats saying they and their families will be killed. They constantly move houses, and even provinces, to escape the violence. Door-to-door house searches by the Taliban continue, as do extrajudicial killings and public beatings. Of course, establishing this scheme is a huge undertaking.
"But it should not have to take three and a half months to even open it for applications. It raises the question how much of a priority this is for the UK government."
However, a government spokesperson defended the scheme's rollout.
"We undertook the UK's biggest and fastest emergency evacuation in recent history, helping more than 15,000 people to safety from Afghanistan, who we are continuing to support.
"The ACRS is one of the most generous schemes in our country's history and will give up to 20,000 further people at risk a new life in the UK. We continue to work at pace to open the scheme amid a complex and changing picture, working across government and with partners such as the UNHCR to design the scheme."
Topics: UK UK Home Secretary Priti Patel Afghan resettlement program English channel
UK migrant deaths: Priti Patel demands BBC drop 'dehumanizing' language
UK receives record asylum claims as MENA applications jump
Doctor goes on trial in Germany accused of torture in Syria /node/2007446/world
Updated 4 sec ago
BERLIN: A court in Germany will begin hearing a case Wednesday against a Syrian doctor accused of crimes against humanity for torturing and killing inmates at a government-run prison in his home country.
They accuse the doctor of killing one person, torture in 18 cases, causing serious physical and psychological harm to another person, and other crimes including one that led to another death.
The defendant entered Germany in 2015, and German authorities permitted him to practice medicine after recertifying his Syrian medical credentials. He worked at a clinic near Kassel in central Germany, where multiple Syrians recognized the doctor from his time in Syria and reported him to German police.
In one case, he is accused of beating an anti-government demonstrator after prison officials called the doctor to the hospital to treat a man experiencing an epileptic attack following torture. That man later died.
In another case, German authorities accused the doctor of intentionally killing a prisoner via injection to demonstrate "his power and at the same time to suppress the uprising of a part of the Syrian population," the Frankfurt regional court said.
The defendant has denied the allegations.
This latest case follows last week's landmark conviction of a former senior member of the Syrian secret police for crimes against humanity, including the torture of at least 30 anti-government demonstrators at a detention center in Douma, Syria.
Alaa M. has been in pretrial detention since his arrest in June 2020.
Former world number one Victoria Azarenka wants no-jab, no-play rule in women's tennis /node/2007431/world
Former world number one Victoria Azarenka wants no-jab, no-play rule in women's tennis
Updated 7 min 51 sec ago
Veteran Azarenka is a long-time member of the powerful WTA Players' Council
MELBOURNE: Two-time Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka threw her support Wednesday behind a vaccine mandate on the women's tour, as tennis wrestles with the fall-out of the saga surrounding unvaccinated Novak Djokovic.
The veteran Azarenka is a long-time member of the powerful WTA Players' Council, which is working through the challenges posed by coronavirus.
Those were laid bare by the chaos and confusion that engulfed vaccine-skeptic Djokovic, who was deported on the eve of the Australian Open.
Speaking in Melbourne, Azarenka admitted it could be legally challenging to enforce but she believes it would be "helpful for everybody" if the WTA Tour considered a no-jab, no-play policy.
"Well, from my standpoint it's been very clear. I believe in science. I believe in getting vaccinated, that's what I did for myself," the 32-year-old Belarusian said.
"If you ask me just for my opinion if that should be the case, I think it would just be helpful for everybody in the world, especially when we are traveling internationally."
But the former world number one acknowledged that forcing people to be jabbed could prove problematic.
"Some countries will not allow mandates. I think to impose something legally on the WTA Tour can be a challenge, I think that's something that we are facing," she said.
To play at the Australian Open players must be vaccinated, unless they have a medical exemption.
Djokovic believed he was exempt based on recently contracting COVID-19, but it was challenged by Australian authorities and after a high-stakes legal battle he flew out of Melbourne on Sunday.
Azarenka said the drawn-out controversy became "a circus" and there "should be a really hard look on this situation moving forward."
"I think as soon as there is a grey area in the rules, that gives a bit too much questions, and situations like this happen," said the Belarusian, who revealed she caught COVID-19 in November.
"On certain things I think black-and-white approach is necessary. In my opinion, this should be the case."
Topics: tennis Coronavirus Victoria Azarenka Australian Open Australia
5 burning questions to be answered at the 2022 Australian Open
UK PM Johnson faces plot to trigger leadership challenge /node/2007401/world
Updated 48 min 27 sec ago
An analysis by The Times newspaper showed that 58 Conservative lawmakers had criticized the prime minister
LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was on Wednesday fighting to shore up his premiership after a revolt by his own lawmakers who are angry over a series of lockdown parties in Downing Street.
Propelled into the top job to "get Brexit done," Johnson in 2019 won his party's biggest majority in more than 30 years but now faces calls to resign after a series of revelations about gatherings in Downing Street during COVID lockdowns.
Johnson has repeatedly apologized for the gatherings, and said that he didn't know about many of the events, though he attended what he said he thought was a work event on May 20, 2020.
To trigger a leadership challenge, 54 of the 360 Conservative MPs in parliament must write letters of no confidence to the chairman of the party's 1922 Committee.
As many as 20 Conservative lawmakers who won their seats at the last general election in 2019 plan to submit letters of no confidence in Johnson, the Telegraph reported.
"Group of 2019 MPs to submit letters to try to hit threshold of 54 to trigger a contest," BBC Political Editor Laura Kuenssberg said. "They might hit 54."
An analysis by The Times newspaper showed that 58 Conservative lawmakers had criticized the prime minister.
The letters are confidential, so the chairman is the only person who knows how many lawmakers have actually written them.
Johnson will address parliament on Wednesday after his Cabinet is expected to approve plans to end the recent restrictions imposed to tackle the spread of COVID-19 in England.
The "Plan B" measures were introduced by the government last month as the omicron strain spread rapidly across Britain. They included guidance to work from home where possible, masks for indoor settings and vaccine passports for mass events.
Topics: UK
Saudi Arabia kicks off the year with a $755 million sukuk issuance
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Ukraine in show of support
WHO says pandemic 'nowhere near over' as France, Germany post record cases /node/2007386/world
Updated 19 January 2022
The UN health chief warned against dismissing omicron as mild
GENEVA: The World Health Organization has warned that the Covid-19 pandemic is far from over, as France, Germany and Brazil posted new records of infections in the past 24 hours.
The highly transmissible omicron strain has spread unabated around the world, pushing some governments to impose fresh measures while speeding up the rollout of vaccine booster shots.
"This pandemic is nowhere near over," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters Tuesday from the agency's headquarters in Geneva.
Europe is at the epicenter of alarming new outbreaks, with Germany's cases soaring past 100,000 and France reporting nearly half a million cases on Tuesday.
The UN health chief warned against dismissing omicron as mild, as the dominant Covid strain continues to flare new outbreaks from Latin America to East Asia after it was first detected in southern Africa in November.
"omicron may be less severe, on average, but the narrative that it is a mild disease is misleading," he said.
Five millions cases were reported in Europe last week and the WHO has predicted omicron could infect half of all Europeans by March, filling hospitals across the continent.
Germany on Tuesday recorded 112,323 coronavirus cases and 239 deaths, officials said, with omicron found in more than 70 percent of the infections.
The surge has pushed German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to seek compulsory vaccinations to ramp up the immunity of the population in Europe's biggest economy.
Other European countries are also battling soaring omicron rates, with neighboring France recently averaging around 300,000 cases daily.
The latest data issued by Public Health France showed that there were 464,769 new cases in the last 24-hour period, a record number.
The record cases come days after the two-year anniversary of the announcement of the first person dying of a virus in China only later identified as Covid.
Since January 11, 2020, known fatalities in the pandemic have soared to more than 5.5 million.
Hopes for Europe's tourism recovery remain bleak with the World Tourism Organization saying Tuesday that foreign arrivals will not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2024 at the earliest, despite a rise of 19 percent last year compared to 2020.
Elsewhere in the world, Brazil registered a new record number of daily cases of more than 137,000 on Tuesday.
The country suffered a devastating second wave last year with deaths topping 4,000 a day, pushing its death toll to the second highest in the world behind the United States.
President Jair Bolsonaro, an avowed vaccine skeptic who has downplayed omicron, is increasingly under fire for his handling of the pandemic, and he is on course to lose the country's October presidential election, according to polls.
In Asia, Japan was set to tighten restrictions across the country, including Tokyo, as it battles record infections fueled by omicron while China partially relaxed transport restrictions in the megacity of Xi'an where millions have been confined to their homes for weeks.
Japanese experts on Wednesday backed placing 13 regions "under quasi-emergency measures from January 21 to February 13" Daishiro Yamagiwa, minister in charge of coronavirus affairs, told reporters.
China's resumption of some inter-city train routes in Xi'an from Tuesday comes just before the Lunar New Year holiday later this month, traditionally a period of mass travel.
It also comes as Beijing battles multiple clusters that are testing its enforcement of a strict "zero-Covid" approach ahead of next month's Winter Olympics.
Focus is increasingly turning to animals and how the virus interacts with them, after at least two countries reported Covid-19 cases in creatures big and small potentially passed between them and humans.
A study published Tuesday in South Africa said big cats caged in zoos are at risk from catching Covid from their keepers.
Researchers found clues pointing to the infection of three lions and two pumas by their handlers at a zoo in Johannesburg, some of whom were asymptomatic.
In Hong Kong, hamsters were bearing the brunt of the semi-autonomous Chinese city's similarly strict approach to Covid, with officials appearing to blame them for two human cases.
The financial hub's government faced growing outrage Wednesday over its decision to cull 2,000 small animals in pet shops after several hamsters in a store allegedly tested positive for Covid-19.
"Internationally, there is no evidence yet to show pets can transmit the coronavirus to humans," Health Secretary Sophia Chan told a press conference.
"But... we will take precautionary measures against any vector of transmission."
Topics: France
Saudi stocks poised to extend winning streak, omicron fears subside: Closing bell
Afghan acting PM Akhund calls for official recognition of Taliban administration /node/2007351/world
The Taliban administration took over Afghanistan in August
KABUL- Afghanistan's acting prime minister, Mullah Hasan Akhund, on Wednesday called for international governments to officially recognize the country's Taliban administration, saying at a news conference in Kabul that all conditions had been met.
"I ask all governments, especially Islamic countries, that they should start recognition," Akhund said, in his first major public broadcast appearance since he assumed the role in September.
Foreign powers have been reluctant to recognize the Taliban administration which took over Afghanistan in August while Western nations led by the United States have frozen billions of dollars worth of Afghan banking assets and cut off development funding that once formed the backbone of Afghanistan's economy.
Topics: #afghanistan Taliban capture Kabul Taliban
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Frankly Speaking: 'I was attacked during the 2016 campaign simply because I was Muslim,' says former Hillary Clinton staffer Huma Abedin
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This is by far the biggest explanation as to why you aren't getting conversions in AdWords. As a small business you most likely don't have the budget to hire a dedicated AdWords manager so the burden often falls on someone who is juggling more than one role. In order to get the most out of your campaign, you have to continuously analyze your past performance and regularly update your campaign. Even if you're a PPC expert, you won't see the results you want if you don't have the time to regularly go into your account and make the necessary changes.
Another problem we often see is businesses who believe they shouldn't bid on their own brand because they come up first in the organic results. However, this doesn't take into account the other competitors that may be bidding on your brand whose ads would show above your organic spot. A quick Google search of the meal kit service, Blue Apron, illustrates this.
As you can see I searched "blue apron" and the first result that came up was for one of their competitors, Hello Fresh. The main goal of bidding on your own brand is to make sure this doesn't happen to you. What's even better? Brand keywords are typically on the cheaper side due to lower traffic and these searchers are more likely to convert.
Many businesses fail at AdWords because their goals are too general. It's easy to say your goal is to increase your sales, but how are you going to achieve that? It is a better practice to pick a specific KPI to track and set a target to hit. This way, not only are you defining success, you are also giving yourself a way to track your performance.
Setting up conversion tracking on your website is crucial to measuring the success of your ads. Unless you have this set up, you'll still be seeing your clicks, but you won't know if these clicks are resulting in sales. If you haven't set up conversion tracking watch the video above or follow this guide.
Even if you've come up with the perfect list of keywords, you are bound to have wasted spend if you aren't using negative keywords. Negative keywords allow to better tailor who sees your ad by ensuring your ad doesn't show for a particular word. Not only will adding negative keywords reduce spend from irrelevant searches, it will also increase conversions by targeting a more specific audience.
The key takeaway from this post should be to AdWords another chance! You don't have to be a PPC expert to see results, you just have to come in with a game plan.
Make AdWords work for you in just 5 minutes a week with LXRGuide.


This set is combine by 1 dining table with 4 wooden chairs. The table in solid wood base, top in MDF with walnut wood veneer. The wooden base also can change to the normal base like metal base, stainless steel base, black iron base. The table top can change to plywood with different kind of wood veneer finish. Like oak wood veneer in matt finish, ebony wood veneer in glossy finish, ash tree wood veneer in open painting, and teak wood veneer in high glossy close painting finish.
Hotel Dining Tables and Chairs detailed specification as below.


text:
Q: Выровнять контент страницы на 100% экрана по высоте. Старый метод Доброго всем времени суток.
    [link text][1]

Реальзовано растягивание на всю страницу по высоте. Минус метода - страница все же прокручивается, но до самого низа. Можно ли как-то этого избежать?
P.S. Знаю, что можно подобное реализовать на: Position absolute, height calc, table. Ищу альтернативу, описанную выше.
A: html {
position:relative;
min-height:100%;
}
body {
margin: 0;
padding: 0;
height: 100%;
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Danielle, a young woman who had a trying childhood and is the product of a failed marriage and an even worse failed step father. She also felt abandoned by her father when he remarried and had another child. Like many kids today, she lost her identity when her parents divorced. She spent her whole life not knowing her worth. When she meets the man of her dreams she hesitates and makes excuses for why she can't commit to a relationship. She had a difficult time coming to terms with her childhood experiences and learning how she could love and be loved again. When she finally meets the man of her dreams, her past haunts her and the future of their relationship lies in the hands of 9-11 terrorists.
Although I loved Danielle's journey, and was moved by her realizations of life, I often wished she would offer more of her past life experiences instead of her day to day, minute by minute experience. The flashbacks to her childhood offered the reader a vivid picture of her upbringing and why she hesitates the way she does in love and life. I wished many of the scenes could have been elaborated on and many that were elaborated on could have been summarized.
All in all, this was a beautiful story of life, love and perseverance.


One of literature's legendary plays unfolded on the lawns of Jerusalem's Bloomfield Gardens when local community theater group 'Theatre in the Rough' premiered their first showing of Hamlet: In Motion on August 8.
The mother-son duo of Beth Steinberg (artistic director) and Natan Skop (producer) present the Shakespeare tragedy in scenes that will take place all over Bloomfield Park as the audience follows along – with no charge for admission.
"Hamlet is sort of a cliche in a good sense in that you studied it in high school or encountered it somewhere and now you can experience it in this setting," said Skop, who is starring as Hamlet.
Steinberg and Skop founded Theatre in the Rough several years after they made aliya from New York in 2006. The idea stemmed from a conversation between mother and son. Skop was still in the army, and after performing with the veteran acting group JEST, he began looking for something new.
"I came to my mom and she said, 'Let's do Shakespeare, running around like we saw in Central Park. It'll be great.' So we started in Liberty Park and moved to this location the second year.
"The first year we invited our friends and we expected maybe 50 people to show up. More than 200 people showed up. We didn't even know where to stand on stage," said Skop.
Since then, the annual performances have evolved into a much-anticipated summer tradition for theater lovers in Jerusalem and its environs. Although attendance grows each year, the roving theater still retains it cozy charm and twinkle in its eye.
Hamlet is one of the most quoted pieces of literature of all time. Steinberg, her husband Ira Skop (who plays two characters in the play) and veteran actress Annabelle Landgarten cut the script nearly in half so that it runs about two hours long and appeals to families.
"You know as a New Yorker and as a homeschooling parent, I really valued affordable theater because I was a theater person. But I also valued being able to find things for the kids and the family and myself," said Steinberg.
The intimacy of the park allows the cast to "break the fourth wall," or interact with the audience, says actor Simon Montagu.
"What I love about the park is that we're in the audiences' faces all the time. It gives us an opportunity to give scenes directly to members of the audience and get them involved. What I also like is that we have a very young audience. Every performance we have a number of kids who are seeing Shakespeare for the first time," said Montagu, who made aliya from London in 1982 and is playing King Claudius.
Steinberg says that one of the most rewarding outcomes of putting on the play is how it unites an audience.
"There's all the people that find out about us... Then there's the people that engage with us in the park. For example, it is not Elul yet in the Jewish calendar, which means that the more religious crowd are now relaxing, having fun post-Tisha Be'av before they go back to school or whenever their calendar moves towards the High Holidays. They are not normally going to performances, but they sit down in the park and watch.
"We come in contact a lot with Arab families and kids, who often have pretty good English and sit down and watch. Theatre brings people together and I really value that. We always want them to enjoy it and feel comfortable with that," said Steinberg.
Hamlet: In Motion. August 12, 13, 15, 16, 26, 27, 28 at 5:30 p.m. Bloomfield Gardens, Jerusalem.
Although the play is free, Theatre in the Rough kindly suggests a donation of NIS 35 to cover their expenses.
For more info visit http://theaterintherough.co.il or call 052-559-4257.


text:
Dota 2 – Is Power Creep Actually Real?
Dota 2Opinion
Last week when discussing how powerful BKB is in the current patch a lot of comments concentrated on how it is a necessity: with an increased power of hero spells having stronger magic immunity item is a must. As such, spell damage and strong crowd control spells are considered to be the main drivers behind earlier and earlier BKBs and the item's impact is so pronounced because of the ability Power Creep. Is Power Creep in Dota actually real, though, or did players simply get better over the years is a question we will try to answer today.
static baseline
One thing about the whole discussion is rather trivial to refute: at their base level spells in Dota didn't get stronger. One needs only to look at changelogs to see how most abilities now deal roughly the same amount of damage they dealt almost twenty years ago. Most iconic stuns have also stayed the same duration.
In fact, in the last ten or so major patches, ever since the experimental Attribute system was scrapped, most heroes are slightly better off at dealing with magic damage. There is no cheap early spell amplification and Strength as a stat gives slightly more HP than it used to. The introduction of Infused Raindrops also solves a lot of problems with heavy early game nukers.
With BKB having an average timing of 23 minutes in the professional scene, which is pre level 20 for cores and pre level 15 for supports, there aren't even many crucial talents in play at this stage of the game, while the impact of neutral items on spell damage is limited to, at most, six percent from either Vambrace or Nether Shawl, or 10% Magic Damage Amp from Grove Bow.
There are also no Debuff Duration Amps at this stage of the game, unless you are playing Rubick. Arcane Blink is a possibility, but it is strictly theoretical, as it costs way too much to be an efficient purchase.
What it means is that at the time when BKB is built on average in the current patch, the game isn't significantly different from the game we played many years ago. The reason why it might feel like the ability damage and crowd control is stronger early on is because players are just naturally better at the game. They are better at layering their disables and better at maximising their early game damage output.
The early levels of Dota are not power-crept and we believe the reason why BKB is built so early is because the item is simply way too good for the price. If anything, it is BKB that was power-crept in the early game, as an early BKB is no longer punished by very low duration in the later stages of the game. That doesn't mean that there is no power creep in Dota, though.
the inventory economy
Several years ago an excellent post was published, discussing some of the more subtle ways in how the game is changing. Very ironically, it was also one of the last posts before the introduction of Neutral Items in patch 7.23.
The general idea behind the original post was simple: heroes themselves didn't get much stronger. Talents provide extra options in the later portions of the game and result in significant power spikes at certain timings, but at their baseline the heroes are more or less as powerful as they used to be, up until late game. This point, as discussed previously, still stands.
There was a discussion of a different problem, however, that became even more pronounced: how there was more economy on the map and how it is easier to tap into that economy.
Our initial impression of the patch was that the economy in it will be toned down: the jungle became harder to farm, so no more flash-farming heroes, meaning less GPM on average. This impression was wrong. Heroes farm just as fast as they used to, sometimes even faster. They also have more ways to utilize their farm and it was true for a while.
Between the free Neutral Item slot, free Town Scroll slot, potential Aghanim's Shard upgrade, consumable Moon Shard and Aghanim's Blessing heroes can now get stronger and stronger for much longer. The value of an individual inventory slot is lessened, because a lot of power can come from consumed or free slot items.
The interesting question arises, though: who benefits from it the most and even if Power Creep is real, is it actually bad for the game?
carry harder
One big, somewhat recent paradigm shift in Dota was that "mages" are weak late game. This is simply no longer true and with the introduction of talents, shards and spell amp effects "mage"-type heroes can scale very well into the late game with their unique skill sets.
In fact, as discussed in one of our previous posts a lot of high level pub players and professional teams regularly experiment with non-right clicking carries and for a good reason: they might be harder and less straightforward to execute, but they have a number of advantages in the later portions of the game, usually associated with crowd control or utility.
Returning to the previous section on how there are now more "effective item slots" for heroes in the late-game, there is an interesting question to answer: do they benefit auto-attacking or spell-casting heroes more?
We believe that the answer is obvious: one type of heroes can build, for example, a Butterfly getting more attack damage and attack speed, increasing their consistent damage output drastically. Or Satanic and have the ability to heal from literally one HP to full HP over four or five auto-attacks which will typically take one second in the late game. Or consume a Moon Shard for extra attack speed that doesn't take a lot.
The most the other can get is +12% spell damage and a dispellable effect that amplifies magic damage by ~40%. Or a 50% cooldown-reliant lifesteal for 10% of your current HP. The aforementioned item that allows one type of hero to go from no to full HP in under one second with ~0.25 cooldown auto-attacks also dispels the magic damage amplification effect of another aforementioned item.
What we are trying to say is that, yes, there is power creep, but it is not Ability Damage power creep, but rather economy power creep. Heroes are significantly more powerful in the late game right now than they were before, and there is still a difference in power levels between conventional right-clicking cores and casters in the late game.
However, with the help of talents and Shards, there is now a wider variety of options available to casters and supports, something that might seem unfair or problematic to old school carry players who are used to the idea of being able to 1v5 in the late game without relying on their team in a team game.
We believe this is where most of Power Creep complaints come from: players who failed to adjust to the new realities of a much more complex and deeper game where the difference between impact of different roles is less pronounced.
Supports specifically are also in a much better spot than even three years ago: they've been "power crept" to a point where their impact in the late game can realistically compete with the impact of a right-clicking carry and it doesn't require exceptional skill, talent and tons of luck to consistently pull off plays. Because of it, Supports also typically have more money and items in the later stages of the game, once again reinforcing their ability to actually stay relevant.
The blog post from three years ago we mentioned previously ended on a slightly pessimistic note: it was wary of the potential impact of an ever-expanding economy. For a good reason as well: the average GPM keeps increasing every year and there are more and more ways to use the money. There is no denying the game's been power crept.
That said, currently overpowered BKB aside, we believe the game is in a very good state despite and maybe even because of the aforementioned power creep. Supports can be incredibly impactful until the very end of the match. Spell casting cores can go toe-to-toe with right-clicking cores at every point in the game. Mobility and Cast Range have been toned down to make effective positioning an actual art form.
There is nothing wrong with allowing heroes to scale indefinitely. There is also nothing wrong with making some roles and some playstyles relatively more powerful. It is a natural evolution of the game.
As long as the game remains tightly balanced and fun to play, Power Creep is less of a problem and more of a tool. In our opinion Valve have been doing a great job in this regard, but what are your thoughts on the matter? Do you think Dota was better back in the day, before Talents, Spell Amplification, Cooldown Reduction, Shards and Backpacks, or do you like all the new mechanics and can't wait to see what more is in store?
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Dota 2 January 17, 2023


text:
Embers of Empire
Public Lectures and Workshops
Professor Stuart Ward
Stuart Ward is Professor of imperial and global history in the Depart-
ment of English at the University of Copenhagen. He has an honours degree in history and politics from the University of Queensland, a PhD from the University of Sydney, and has held previous posts at the European University Institute (1991-4), Odense University (1997-2000), and King's College London (2001-3).
In 2008-9 he was the Keith Cameron Chair of Australian History at University College Dublin. He has also held visiting fellowships at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra and the University of Greenland in Nuuk. He has been based in Copenhagen since 2003, and in 2008 was awarded the University of Copenhagen annual prize for teaching: Årets Harald. His major publications include Australia and the British Embrace: The Demise of the Imperial Ideal (Melbourne, 2001); British Culture and the End of Empire (ed., Manchester, 2001); Australia's Empire (ed. with Deryck Schreuder, Oxford, 2008); Exhuming Passions: The Pressure of the Past in Ireland and Australia (ed. with Katie Holmes, 2011); and The Unknown Nation: Australia After Empire (with James Curran, Melbourne 2010). The Unknown Nation was shortlisted for the Australian Prime Minister's prize for history in 2011. Since 2010 he has been provost of Denmark's oldest collegium, Regensen.
Click here to view Professor Stuart Ward's university profile.
Click here for further information about Stuart Ward's research project.
Emil Holms Kanal 6, 2300 København S
Astrid Rasch
hws296@hum.ku.dk
Tel: +45 353-29281
African Decolonization
Island Fortress
The 'Untied' Kingdom
Remembering Britishness
'Shared History' of Imperialism
The Break-Up of 'Greater Britain'
Implosion of Empire
The British Empire through British Eyes
HISTORIE OG SPROG
Europe After Empire
Life Writing After Empire


Managing your property in Israel can be a stressful task, requiring a degree in multitasking, an in-depth knowledge of the Israeli "system" and a bucketload of patience. When you are not used to the way things work here, or are not a fluent Hebrew speaker, the job becomes exponentially more difficult. And even if you do hire a property manager, they may not share the expectations you have for professionalism, punctuality, and customer service.
Yoel Kaufman, founder of SCRUBS Management, recognized the need for a hassle-free one-stop management solution for landlords in Israel. An oleh himself with five years' experience in the service industry, Yoel is well aware of the challenges faced by property owners, especially those who live or travel overseas. His mission is to provide landlords with peace of mind that their properties are being managed in the best way possible.
SCRUBS' motto is "You Don't Have to Manage on Your Own." For Yoel, this means an unwavering commitment to fulfilling the client's expectations with the minimum of hassle. Too often, there is a disparity between how management is done in Israel and how it is done in chutz la'aretz. As a native of the UK, Yoel knows the importance of customer service that caters to the specific needs of each client, and he works with each client towards the best solution. When you choose Scrubs Management, you're opting for unparalleled commitment to you and your property.
Honesty and integrity are the cornerstones of every successful business relationship, and when choosing a property manager this is even more crucial. SCRUBS has built up a reputation as an efficient and trustworthy service provider that adheres to the highest ethical practices. Yoel's philosophy is rooted in honesty, integrity, and trust, and he is proud of the strong relationships he has formed with clients over the years.
A good manager needs to be an expert in everything to do with property. SCRUBS Management looks after every single aspect of the management, maintenance and letting of your investment. They are proud of the fact that they focus in on every detail, and aim to go above and beyond, offering a quick turnaround time with any issue that arises. You'll even receive a monthly report detailing everything that's been checked.
When you're away from your property for weeks at a time, it's important to keep everything running smoothly, so SCRUBS will check the alarm system is working properly and sort out the mail. They will inspect the bathrooms, the balcony, and electricity to ensure that there are no problems. And if there is an issue, they'll get it fixed promptly and professionally. Even pre-arrival preparations will be made so that after a long flight, you are greeted by a clean house, a fully stocked refrigerator and pantry, and a freshly made bed.
In Israel, connections are everything. Without the right contacts, it can be surprisingly difficult to find trustworthy and skilled technicians to perform prompt repair work and renovations, especially when you're abroad or don't speak the same language. SCRUBS have a solid network of professionals for every scenario – whether it's a handyman, plumber, or electrician—and all of them are English speakers, licensed, and covered by a warranty. Of course, there will also be a representative from SCRUBS there to oversee and evaluate the work being done. SCRUBS will go to meetings on behalf of the client, whether it's with lawyers, contractors, vaad bayit, or anything else.
Close attention to detail separates SCRUBS from other management companies. "Some management companies will cut corners to lower costs in the short term," Yoel explains. "But cheap always ends up expensive. Something goes wrong a little further down the line, or the finishing is not up to scratch, and then the landlord has to spend more money and time to fix the new problems." Often, the initial cost works out cheaper too as SCRUBS can get better rates from vendors than had the landlord approached the vendor himself.
Yoel relates a story from a tenant who experienced first-hand what can happen with cowboy managers. After eight days without hot water and multiple calls from the tenant, the manager of the property (owned by an absentee landlord) finally sent someone round—an unlicensed handyman!—to look at the boiler. Once the handyman arrived, it was clear he had no idea what he was doing. He insisted it was "fixed," but lo and behold, there was still no hot water. The tenant then called a licensed electrician who immediately saw that the wires had burned out, and promptly fixed the problem. Needless to say, the manager was furious that the tenant had "gone behind his back," and the landlord ended up paying a call-out fee for both the handyman and the professional.
Jerusalem-based SCRUBS Management offers property management services, from electrical work and plumbing, laundry and cleaning to placing properties on the market.


text:
Impeachment: Coming Closer, Notwithstanding Pat Buchanan
A question of Heritage.
While Peter Brimelow was composing Obama's Border Dissolution Is Treason. The Answer Is Impeachment. It Would Work. two other writers were thinking along the same lines.
Obama's irresponsible taunt: President increasingly willing to go at it alone by Jonathan Turley New York Daily News Sunday July 6 2014 is a mild and gentle reproof which nevertheless gets to the point-
When Congress failed to pass the Dream Act loosening immigration laws for certain groups, the President ordered the same result unilaterally… While he clearly has authority to set enforcement priorities in areas like immigration law, Obama has repeatedly stepped well over the line of separation.
and wisely says
In our system, there is no license to go it alone. Rather, the Republic's democratic architecture requires compromise. The process is designed to moderate legislation and create a broader consensus in support of these laws.
Nor is congressional refusal to act on a particular prescription of how to fix the economy or repair immigration laws an excuse. Sometimes the country (and by extension Congress) is divided.
When that happens, less gets done. The Framers understood such times. They lived in such a time.
Turley concludes
…presidential taunts have constitutional consequences.
Professor Turley is said to be a liberal. This is not the attitude the Democrats want in their Supreme Court nominees
At RedState, Erick Erickson cannot be said to be either mild or gentle, but he does advance.
Boehner and the House Republicans want to sue the President of the United States. Instead, they should man up.
227 years ago, when the founders of the nation set about drafting the constitution, they gave the House of Representatives the exclusive power to initiate revenue bills and impeach the Executive. That the House would sue the President over his use of executive power is an indication that its leadership no more values their own powers under constitution than the President they sue.
This fierce attack on the GOP leadership (including Paul Ryan) concludes
John Boehner's lawsuit is nothing more than political theater and a further Republican waste of taxpayer dollars. If the Republican leaders in the House are too chicken to use their constitutional powers to rein in the President, they should just call it a day and go home.
The House GOP Should Man Up Instead of Resorting to Political Theater in the Courts July 7th, 2014 At this rate Erickson will be directly calling for impeachment by the end of the month.
Sadly, Pat Buchanan has flinched. Impeachment, a Bridge Too Far? simply says the Left controls the MSM and the Bureaucracy and that the prospects for the mid terms are good enough.
Pat does not mention the Border Scandal or the Administrative Amnesty at all! At a time when the Democrats have clearly gone to a No Borders policy and have implemented a de facto Amnesty this is an omission which will literally be fatal to the Nation.
In an even worse shortfall of tactical judgment, Pat fails to consider the difference between the (devastatingly successful) Nixon and the (unsuccessful) Clinton impeachment campaigns and the Obama situation.
Nixon and Clinton could not undo what they had done. An impeachment had to be war to the death. As Peter Brimelow concludes
Obama, in theory, could reverse himself at any point and allow the law to be enforced. Quite probably, he would do it to undercut imminent conviction if he thought the Senate trial was going badly.
And isn't that the point of politics—to change policy?
Unfortunately, there are those who think the point of politics is to get rich.


The Dynamo Analytics UK office has moved! We have moved just 5 minutes down the road and settled down at Dawson House, 5 Jewry Street, London, EC3N 2EX. You can find us on the 1st Floor of the building. The nearest tube station is Aldgate.


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text:
'use strict';

var expect = require('chai').expect;
var sinon = require('sinon');
var Testem = require('../public/testem/testem_client');

describe('Testem Client', function() {

  it('passes new socket to each custom adapter', function() {
    var socket1, socket2;

    Testem.useCustomAdapter(function(socket) {
      socket1 = socket;
    });

    Testem.useCustomAdapter(function(socket) {
      socket2 = socket;
    });

    expect(socket1).to.not.equal(socket2);
  });

  it('emits message with custom decycle depth to iframe', function() {
    var eventMaxDepth = 10;

    global.decycle = sinon.spy();

    Testem._isIframeReady = true;

    Testem.useCustomAdapter(function(socket) {
      socket.iframe = {
        contentWindow: {
          postMessage: function() {}
        }
      };

      socket.eventMaxDepth = eventMaxDepth;
      socket.emitMessage();
    });

    sinon.assert.calledWithExactly(global.decycle, sinon.match.any, eventMaxDepth);
  });

  it('drains message with custom decycle depth from queue', function() {
    var eventMaxDepth = 10;

    global.decycle = sinon.spy();

    Testem.emitMessageQueue = [];
    Testem._isIframeReady = false;

    Testem.useCustomAdapter(function(socket) {
      socket.iframe = {
        contentWindow: {
          postMessage: function() {}
        }
      };

      socket.eventMaxDepth = eventMaxDepth;
      socket.emitMessage();
    });

    expect(Testem.emitMessageQueue).to.not.be.empty();

    Testem.drainMessageQueue();

    sinon.assert.calledWithExactly(global.decycle, sinon.match.any, eventMaxDepth);
  });

  it('runs registered hooks after all tests finished', function(done) {
    var firstCalled = false;
    var secondCalled = false;
    Testem.afterTests(function(config, data, cb) {
      firstCalled = true;
      cb();
    });

    Testem.afterTests(function(config, data, cb) {
      secondCalled = true;
      cb();
    });

    Testem.on('after-tests-complete', function() {
      expect(firstCalled).to.be.true();
      expect(secondCalled).to.be.true();
      done();
    });
    Testem.runAfterTests();
  });
});

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Solutions for seniors with eating difficulties
Tennessee law firm giving away free divorce for Valentine's Day
1,000 people camp out overnight at Daytona Stadium to get vaccine
by: WESH
Posted: Jan 5, 2021 / 08:35 AM EST / Updated: Jan 5, 2021 / 08:36 AM EST
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (WESH) — There was a traffic nightmare Monday morning to get a COVID-19 vaccine near Daytona Stadium. It was caused as people tried to camp overnight to secure a spot for the vaccine.
To ensure that did not happen again Tuesday morning, the gates of Daytona Stadium opened at 6:15 p.m. Monday to allow up to 1,000 people to park in the parking lot overnight, instead of on the side of the road.
According to the City of Daytona Beach, the vaccination site at Daytona Stadium reached capacity at 6:45 a.m. Tuesday morning, proving that the demand for a vaccine remains high, as it was on Monday.
LATEST STORIES ON WFLA.COM:
by Athina Morris / Jan 18, 2021
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) - The ex-Florida data scientist whose home was raided after she accused the state of manipulating COVID-19 data turned herself in to authorities on Sunday night and was released on a $2,500 bond Monday.
According to an affidavit, Rebekah Jones is accused of hacking a state government communication system to send an unauthorized message to thousands of people that criticized Florida's response to the coronavirus pandemic.


The Charlotte Youth Ballet attracts a wide variety of patrons and sponsors, especially from the business community. Through sponsorship of programming and special events, corporations receive branding and marketing visibility.
Sponsorships offer a variety of benefits at several funding levels. Sponsorship packages and experiences are customizable base on the needs of the corporation.
The Charlotte Youth Ballet enjoys a rich tradition of enhancing the cultural life of the Charlotte community with the only youth-based performing ballet company in the region. For over a quarter of a century, the CYB has proudly produced professional quality Nutcracker and storybook ballets that merge a principal cast of professional international dancers and local students of ballet.
Our productions are designed to be accessible and affordable to a diverse audience with a particular focus on families in an effort to expand the reach of this centuries old art form and to foster a lifelong appreciation for ballet.
HOW DO YOU START A SPONSORSHIP?
Starting with basic sponsorship packages at each of our various funding levels, we will work with you to custom tailor a sponsorship package that meets your needs.
Please call us at (980) 322-5522 to schedule a session with our development team to begin your sponsorship of the Charlotte Youth Ballet.


Wood box with drawers, vintage 10 1/4 in.lX6in.w.X3.5in.H.
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CoinANX – The Go To Solution for Crypto Liquidity!
With the increase in liquidity issue on the crypto platform, CoinANX begs to differ from the rest of the cryptocurrencies to serve the purpose of exchangeability. CoinANX has now geared up to launch its ANX coins which can be easily bought using fiat currency and can be used to buy/sell commodities across the borders without the worry about the fluctuating prices.
"To provide CoinANX users the ability to pay and exchange as many viable fiat currencies as possible" – Antony Joseph Crossman.
Built with ERC20 token technology, CoinANX tokens will be launched tomorrow 17/04/18 with a soft cap of 1 million Dollars and a hard cap of 3.75 million Dollars. The exchange is designed and committed to support many native currencies that can thrive in the economy. This is crucial to CoinANX as they strive to create the most convenient and accessible crypto exchange platform.
CoinANX aims to make cryptocurrency payments direct and affordable for anyone from any corner of the world. However, any individual wanting to exchange fiat currencies or cryptos should have CoinANX tokens.