text:
Will Donald Trump be held to account for ordering the assassination of Qasem Soleimani?
Sat, 2020-01-04 03:18 by James Sinnamon
The assassination of Qasem Soleimani, ordered by United States' President Donald Trump was a criminal act. Any country, including the United States, which claims to uphold the rule of law, should spare no effort to bring to justice President Donald Trump, and all the other perpetrators of that crime including Mike Pompeo and Mike Pence.
Qasem Soleimani, unlike the United States' Army had, with the Iraqi Kata'ib Hezbollah paramilitaries, effectively fought against ISIS in Iraq. Those paramilitaries are connected to the country's Popular Mobilization Forces that are part of Iraqi government's armed forces. Qasem Soleimani was adored by most Iraqis.
On Sunday 29 December, Donald Trump ordered attacks on the Kata'ib Hezbollah paramilitaries. As a pretext for his order to attack Iraq's armed forces, Donald Trump claimed that the Kata'ib Hezbollah paramilitaries had launched a rocket attack which had killed a U.S. contractor. Although the Iraqi government began to investigate the attack, Trump was not prepared to await the outcome of the investigation. 27 Paramilitaries were killed in that rocket attack as a result.
Subsequently, enraged Iraqis tried to storm the U.S. embassy and demanded that the U.S. army occupiers leave Iraq.
Then on Friday 3 January, Donald Trump ordered the helicopter strike which killed Qasem Soleimani and 4 Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) officers. The U.S., itself the world's biggest known destabiliser and cause of death and destruction, claimed that this assassination would somehow help stabilise Iraq.
Qasem Soleimani, unlike, the U.S. military, was in Iraq with the permission of its government. The murder of Soleimani would be found by any functional court of law to be a crime and its perpetrator imprisoned.
As well as acting to defend themselves against further U.S. aggression, Iraqi and Iranian patriots should also pursue all legal avenues, through international bodies like the United Nations and the International Criminal Court, to have Donald Trump brought to justice for this crime.
It is also well past the time that the Iraqi government told U.S. military forces to leave. Iraq would be well advised to also remove the U.S. embassy from its soil.
Qasseim Soleimani was inside Iraq with the permission of the Iraqi government. No-one guilty of ordering his assassination should be walking free, let alone running the United States.
See also : Donald Trump Murdered Qasem Soleimani (10/1/20) | by James Risen | The Intercept_, US legal experts say Soleimani assassination violated international law (4/1/20) | PressTV
Qasem Soleimani
Popular Mobilisation Units
Kata'ib Hezbollah
James Sinnamon
The murdered Soleimani "Tehran's intimidating political fixer"?
From Donald Trump Murdered Qasem Soleimani (10/1/20) by James Risen | The Intercept. (The emphases in the quoted text below, are my own. - JS) :
Donald Trump has dragged America into a moral abyss. And yet Congress, the press, and the public are unwilling to admit that we are now standing in blood. The nation is enabling a murderous demagogue, and we are all complicit.
The president of the United States has murdered a high-ranking official of a foreign government. The assassination last week of Iranian Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani was a state-sponsored murder.
But no one in the Washington establishment seems prepared to come out and say the hard truth: Donald Trump is a murderer.
Yet, further below, James Risen writes:
Soleimani was the head of the Quds Force, the elite external operations arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which operated with impunity throughout Iraq under his leadership. He ran Iran's ground campaign against ISIS in Iraq, in parallel to the American air campaign, and employed Shia militias and their ruthless tactics to defeat the cult-like group. The United States has been happy to take credit for the victory over ISIS in Iraq, without admitting that it relied heavily upon Soleimani's horrific paramilitary actions and his strategic acumen.
But he was much more than a special forces commander or spymaster; he was Iran's most important envoy, and he served as Tehran's intimidating political fixer throughout the Middle East.
He dominated the political landscape in Baghdad. In November, The Intercept and the New York Times reported on leaked Iranian intelligence cables that publicly documented Iran's deep influence in Iraq from Iran's perspective for the first time. What jumped off the pages in the leaked cables was Soleimani's personal political power in Iraq and his hold on many of Iraq's top political, military, and security officials.
Last October, Soleimani intervened at the highest levels of Iraqi politics to keep Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi in office amid massive protests and calls for his resignation.
So, on the one hand, James Risen rightly states that President Donald Trump is guilty of murdering Iranian General Qasem Soleimani. This clear fact and the consequent need to at least have Donald Trump shown up for the murderer that he is at least before world public opinion, if not in a court of law, is, bizarrely, rarely stated, even in the Iranian PressTV, the Russian RT or other alternative newsmedia.
On the other hand, whilst acknowledging Qasem Soleimani's role in leading the fight against ISIS in Iraq, James Risen describes his tactics against ISIS as "horrific paramilitary actions". No specific examples are given, let alone the context in which those "horrific paramilitary actions" were used. He also labels Soleimani "Tehran's intimidating political fixer throughout the Middle East".
So, whilst condemning Donald Trump's murder of Qasem Soleimani and acknowledging his leading role in the fight against ISIS, James Risen still manages to depict Qasem Soleimani, who was mourned by many millions of Iraqis and Iranians before, and during, his funeral as a ruthless and unconscionable operator, feared by most Iraqis. So, in spite of his initial outcry against the murder of Qasem Soleimani, much of what James Risen has subsequently written, seems to provide some justification for that murder.


text:
KCLR NewsNews & Sport
42 Covid patients at St Luke's Hospital for Carlow-Kilkenny as HSE boss says there are signs we've reached the peak of Omicron wave
There are no cases of the virus among patients in ICU at the local hospital
Sinead Burke Send an email 14/01/2022
St Luke's Hospital, Kilkenny (Google Maps)
The head of the HSE says there are "positive indications" Ireland has reached the peak of the Omicron wave.
Paul Reid says the rise in Covid hospitalisations has steadied and there has been a reduction in GP referrals for testing.
Latest figures show 1,011 people are in hospital with the virus and 92 are in ICU, while yesterday saw a further 18,904 cases reported.
Covid-19 Daily operations Hospital figures 13 Jan 2022
St Luke's hospital for Carlow-Kilkenny was reporting 42 patients with Covid last night.
There is no-one with the virus in ICU at the local hospital at the moment.
Mr Reid says there are early signs the peak of the current wave has been reached:
"I would be cautiously hopeful that we are reaching the stage, I mean there's a few positive indications from a Health Service perspective"

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Mount Vernon is located in the center of Skagit County about midway between Vancouver, B.C. and Seattle, with the Skagit River flowing through its tranquil farmland before heading to the shores of the Sea. With Mount Vernon waterfront real estate, you'll be in a bird watcher's and an angler's paradise, as the river is home to all five of Washington's native salmon species and two trout species. It's all of those fish that attract the birds, which includes one of the largest bald eagle populations in the continental U.S, as well as wintering trumpeter swans and snow geese. If you're looking for saltwater shores, Bay View State Park is just west of town on Padilla Bay and offers swimming, beach combing, boating, fishing and hiking, with a stretch of the Pacific Northwest Trail inside the park. Throughout the Mount Vernon area are numerous creeks, streams and parks, making this an outdoor lover's dream.
With Mount Vernon waterfront real estate, you'll be living in a city that's often been ranked as one of the best places to live in the country. In addition to all the activities on water and land, there are a wide range of attractions, shopping and dining opportunities to take advantage of. In fact, the city is home to more than 250 retail stores, a mall, outlet shops and more, and nearly as many restaurant options too. You'll also have easy access to the annual Tulip Festival Street Fair hosted downtown, which is part of theinternationally renowned Skagit Valley Tulip Festival held annually in April, transforming the landscape into a kaleidoscope of colors, with a rainbow of tulips blanketing the landscape for miles around.
As you search Mount Vernon waterfront real estate you'll find many options from vacant lots and rustic homes waiting for your special touch to more luxurious homes on acreage. One thing they all have in common is the opportunity to enjoy waterside living at its best.
Take advantage of our industry-leading tools to make your property search as easy as possible and be sure to register for a FREE account so that you can receive email alerts whenever new Mount Vernon waterfront real estate for sale hits the market.
If you're seeking to sell your Mount Vernon waterfront property, contact our Waterfront Specialists directly for a comprehensive listing analysis and to learn more about the cutting-edge marketing strategies we'll use to sell your home quickly for top dollar!


Lee wanted to fill an empty swimming pool with water. He turned on the tap at 13:50. At 14:20, the swimming pool was 1/4–full of water. If he wanted it to be 3/4 full of water, at what time should he turn off the tap? Give your answer in a 24-hour clock format, such as 19:00.
So the answer is 15:20.


text:
Q: Prevent NavigationView from automatically highlighting selections I decided to add the support design library
 compile 'com.android.support:design:23.1.1'

to my gradle, to allow me to implement
compile 'com.android.support:appcompat-v7:23.1.1'

Without crashing.
My issue is that I was using navigation view to allow users to select items from sub groups which would show what they have (filters mostly), but now what I am selecting is randomly vanishing, and selecting items that I do not want to just because they are tapped.
Before I achieved this by doing this
   selection.setIcon(R.drawable.radio_button_off);
   selection.setChecked(false);
   item.setIcon(R.drawable.radio_button_on);
   item.setChecked(true);

On whatever item was tapped. Is there a way to prevent navigation view from automatically assigning the checked highlights? Or any alternatives methods? thanks

A: I am hoping you already added NavigationItemSelectedListener to select the item. If yes and still facing the issue, then please share your code for further info.
Cheers!!!

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Straight ahead recording using PC Cam with PC speak backing track playback.. Need to keep at it but thanks for looking.
A rough recording... But figured I'd give it a go... Thanks for looking.
I have owned guitars since I was 15 (now I am 41...eek!] BUT probably didn't start playing seriously until I was 28. I have always been a strum and sing kinda guy (played rhythm and sang in a cover band for 3 years). Now I am looking to broaden my horizon and develop solo skills along with improv and music theory application.
Other users have left no comments for kalamari.


Scene Reference: A suit from Cole Haddon's horror-romance television series Dracula. Dracula (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) in the guise of Alexander Grayson heads to London to enact his revenge on the Order of the Dragon, an organisation who ruined his life centuries earlier. However, things are complicated when he meets a beautiful woman, Mina Murray (Jessica De Gouw) who seems to be the reincarnation of his dead wife. Specially designed suits were worn for action and stunt scenes throughout the series.
Tags & Markings: Handwritten label reading "Stunt"


text:
Browsing 08-August by Issue Date
08-August
Nanaimo Free Press [Monday, August 1, 1898]
Unknown author (Nanaimo Free Press, 1898-08-01)
Nanaimo Free Press [Tuesday, August 2, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Wednesday, August 3, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Thursday, August 4, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Friday, August 5, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Saturday, August 6, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Wednesday, August 10, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Thursday, August 11, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Friday, August 12, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Saturday, August 13, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Monday, August 15, 1898]
Nanaimo Free Press [Tuesday, August 16, 1898]


In order to create a vibrant and ever changing game world Sense of Place Games has created it's own custom built atmospheric and day-night cycle systems within the Unity game engine for up coming title Spheres.
Spheres is a game about exploration in a large open world. A key part of enticing the player through this world is that the environment is in a continual state of flux, even previously visited area will appear different depending on the time of day and weather conditions at any time.
The world of Spheres is continuous and the player is always in control of the camera so there are no loading screens or cuts to hide behind when introducing new atmospherics.
To create these ever changing atmospherics Sense of Place Games has created a series of independent day-night lighting and weather systems that interact with each other over time to produce ever changing combinations of conditions.
These systems will produce different atmospheric effects that will not only change seamlessly over time, but also be different from place to place as the player moves through the world.
The aim is to create a world that feels organic and varied, a world that will keep rewarding the player as they explore even when they return to areas they have already visited.


← What Teething Taught Me!
So in case you've forgotten…we bought a new house and have been moving over the past week. Moving with an 8 month old is certainly NOT something I'd recommend and I will be sharing those stories in the next week or so.
But for now, it's on to some delicious food!
One of the first things I did was set up our kitchen. We ate takeout for over a week and I was ready to get cooking again (our waistlines and wallets agreed!).
For those of your who don't know, I am a huge Rachael Ray fan! I credit her with "teaching" me how to cook and create recipes on my own. This is one of those recipes I've created based on what I've learned watching her shows, studying her cookbooks and reading her magazine!
Honestly, Darrin loves this dinner and so do I! It's really filling and super delicious. It's also pretty healthy if you use chicken sausage. I think it's even "entertaining" worthy – although I'd definitely use real sausage if I was making it for someone else – it browns up a little nicer.
Give it a try and let me know what you think or share another favorite recipe of yours in the comments.
Sounds great. A good meal for company! When are we invited?


text:
ALL RESULTS BLOG FORUM NETWORK ADVERTISEMENT PARTNERS
Woman power: Top 5 female change-makers in West Africa
Olaitan Olakanmi (Nigeria) is turning waste to wealth: "Ecopreneurs make money and protect the environment"
Featured Member: BiFasor - innovating shipping in Africa
Afrinection Skills Insights: The Vital Soft Skills You as an African New Graduate Need to Find and Keep a Job
Secure funding for your start-up like a pro: five tips
James R Wood on BizTip blog: preventing & solving cashflow problems
Joe Burkhart henry on Afrinection: A Vision
Joe Burkhart henry on Hiring African Talent
Joe Burkhart henry on What are the qualities of Successful entrepreneurs?
Joe Burkhart henry on Advertise with Afrinection
Joe Burkhart henry on The African Entrepreneur: Challenges and Opportunities
Joe Burkhart henry on Our favourite change-makers from Africa
Joe Burkhart henry on African 2017 outlook: sectors to keep an eye on
Somalia & Morocco: Africa's rising tech stars
As the year 2018 is drawing to a close, the use & roll-out of smart technology in Africa, including North Africa, is reaching a high point.
Whilst the developed world is fiddling with technological solutions to propel humankind into a new stage of innovation advancement, Africa is often seen as a continent where smart technology has not yet taken flight. This is far from true: from Big Data and the Internet of Things (IoT) to Virtual Reality, 3D printing, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) - Africa is on the forefront of the so-called fourth industrial revolution.
The reason is simple: internet prices and smartphone costs are falling whilst smartphone use is increasing. This and the urge of innovators to solve the continent's many social problems through technology. All of this is helping Africa's entrepreneurial arena grow, resulting in a rush in startup funding and tech investment. There are no signs of slowing down, with tech incubators and hubs like KivuHub and AfriLabs sprouting like mushrooms. North Africa is on track too, including Morocco and Somalia.
1) Morocco: promising technology hub
One country that is surprising - and satisfying - global investors, is Morocco. A quick look at the 2017 report on African tech startup funding by Partech Africa shows that Moroccan startups raised US$3.9 million over the course of last year. This ranks the Northern African nation ninth on the continent! This amount raised by Moroccan tech startups is four times higher than that of 2016, which shows great investment potential.
In a nutshell, Morocco is currently home to more than twenty-five tech incubators, accelerators, and co-working spaces with more than half of these hubs situated in the country's largest city, Casablanca. Among these, the African growth and development efforts made by organizations such as New Work Lab, Enacrus Morocco, Numa Casablanca, LaFactory, and H7 should be highlighted. The later was launched last year by Amine Al-Hazzaz, the former Special Advisor to the Minister of Entrepreneurship, Innovation & Venture Capita. The organization intends to scale local as well as additional African ventures in the future.
Amongst Afrinection's members in Morocco are Novincia Technology, the SAFA Fair Trade, and Mohammed Ennakhli.
2) Somalia: flourishing technology hub
On the 26th of October 2018, the first-ever Mogadishu Tech Summit took place in Somalia's capital. Different types of individuals from across the globe came together for this event, from young African entrepreneurs, students, government officials to potential international investors.
The Tech Summit was supported by the United Nations, The Federal Government of Somalia, and the city's very own local innovation hub, iRise. Functioning as a research center, a co-working space as well as an incubator and provider of stimulation services for startups, iRise is a counter-voice to most media reports on current events in Somalia, which usually focus on suffering and attacks.
iRise may have only been in business for a year, the company is creating waves across the country. Based in Mogadishu, the venture is cultivating an accelerating growth of startups across the nation. According to an interview with the founder of the tech startup, Yool Tech, Abdikhaliq Ahmed, "[Their] goal is a future where we will provide the technology-related services that people would have previously sought abroad".
Amongst Afrinection's members in Somalia are Zillah Technologies, ChahTech, Energy Action Partners Somaliland, and SaxanSaxo Air Cool and Temperature Services
In conclusion, technology has become increasingly democratized and the rush to develop Northern Africa into a smart market is on track. African businesses are working towards serving their consumers' adapting needs and expectations. It is without a doubt that countries such as Morocco, Somalia, Algeria, Tunisia, and Egypt are making waves!
Joe Burkhart henry posted comment Mar 12, 2019 10:20 AM
New City, New York, United States
Real Estate - Financing
I'm a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Investment Counselor (CIC), and an accredited wealth management advisor (AWMA), I am pleased to tell you of an accredited angel investor and lender who may be interested in funding your business/project.
I am wondering if this is of any interest to you. Kindly write a letter to the investor and mail him a copy of your business plan / executive summary.
Name: Dr.Adrianus Koene
E-mail : adrianjkoene@gmail.com
Please, do not hesitate to email me if you have further questions.
Ruth Wickett
CIC®, AWMA®, CFP®
Find Prospective Employers
Find Prospective Employees
Find Entrepreneurs
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Copyright © 2019 Afrinection, Inc. All Rights Reserved.


text:
Q: Observable timeout logic: migration to RxJava2 I'm slowly moving my application from RxJava 1 to RxJava 2.
Everything works fine after having updated all the code, except for one use case and I'm kind of pretty lost at the moment, I guess I need to go back to the document to get it properly.
The application loads a collection of Asset from the network and it this operation takes from than x ms, it displays a loading animation. Then when the data is retrieved, animation is stopped/removed and data displayed.
This what I had with RxJava 1 and which was working:
getAssetsSubscription = new GetAssetsUseCase().execute()
                    .publish(new Func1<Observable<List<Asset>>, Observable<List<Asset>>>() {
                        @Override
                        public Observable<List<Asset>> call(Observable<List<Asset>> o) {
                            return o.timeout(LOADING_VIEW_THRESHOLD_MS, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS,
                                    Observable.fromCallable(new Callable<List<Asset>>() {
                                         @Override
                                         public List<Asset> call() throws Exception {
                                             if (isAdded()) {
                                                 getActivity().runOnUiThread(new Runnable() {
                                                     @Override
                                                     public void run() {
                                                         setLoadingViewVisibility(true);
                                                     }
                                                 });
                                             }
                                             return null;
                                         }
                                     }
                                )
                            ).ignoreElements().mergeWith(o);
                        }
                    })
                    .subscribe(new Subscriber<List<Asset>>() {
                @Override
                public void onCompleted() {
                    // Do things...
                }

                @Override
                public void onError(Throwable e) {
                    // Do things...
                }

                @Override
                public void onNext(List<Asset> assets) {
                    // Do things...
                }
            });

And this is my "translation" to RxJava 2: with this, the data is never displayed, onComplete is always called, but onNext never. This is also the case when the timeout is not triggered.
disposables.add(new GetAssetsUseCase().execute().publish(new Function<Observable<List<Asset>>,
                    ObservableSource<List<Asset>>>() {
                @Override
                public ObservableSource<List<Asset>> apply(Observable<List<Asset>> listObservable) throws
                        Exception {
                    return listObservable.timeout(LOADING_VIEW_THRESHOLD_MS, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS,
                            Observable.fromCallable(new Callable<List<Asset>>() {
                                @Override
                                public List<Asset> call() throws Exception {
                                    if (isAdded()) {
                                        getActivity().runOnUiThread(new Runnable() {
                                            @Override
                                            public void run() {
                                                setLoadingViewVisibility(true);
                                            }
                                        });
                                    }
                                    return null;
                                }
                            })
                    ).ignoreElements().mergeWith(Completable.fromObservable(listObservable)).toObservable();
                }
            })
            .subscribeWith(new DisposableObserver<List<Asset>>() {
                @Override
                public void onComplete() {
                    // Do things...
                }

                @Override
                public void onError(Throwable e) {
                    // Do things...
                }

                @Override
                public void onNext(List<Asset> assets) {
                    // Do things...
                }
            }));

A: The original code used Observable#mergeWith(Observable).
Since RxJava2 narrows types where appropriate this changed in your revised code to Completable.mergeWith(Completable).
To get the same behavior as the old code you need to change the order of operations:

*

*from .ignoreElements().mergeWith(Completable.fromObservable(listObservable)).toObservable()

*to .ignoreElements().<List<Asset>>toObservable().mergeWith(listObservable)
since Completable.fromObservable(...) is basically equivalent to Observable#ignoreElements().
In addition the return null; will probably cause problems with RxJava2 since the contract specifies there can be no null values in the event stream. Consider replacing the Observable.fromCallable(...) with Completable.fromRunnable(...).toObservable()

A: That's because your callable returns null, which means it is a terminal event.
@Override
public List<Asset> call() throws Exception {
    if(isAdded()) {
        getActivity().runOnUiThread(new Runnable() {
            @Override
            public void run() {
                setLoadingViewVisibility(true);
            }
        });
    }
    return null;
}

Should be
@Override
public List<Asset> call() throws Exception {
    if(isAdded()) {
        getActivity().runOnUiThread(new Runnable() { // TODO: move after `observeOn(AndroidSchedulers.mainThread())`
            @Override
            public void run() {
                setLoadingViewVisibility(true);
            }
        });
    }
    return Collections.emptyList();
}


text:
Q: Assign multiple existing network interfaces to macvlan bridge inside container I am using VMware Workstation 16 Pro to host Ubuntu 18.04 server, on this host I have multiple virtual network interfaces which each network interface connected to a host-only network.
on top of this host I'm running docker-compose to host the containers of our application.
Our application uses L2 networking which gives me the option to use macvlan or ipvlan.
When trying to create the macvlans I'm getting the following error:

Failed to create network pool1: Error response from daemon: Pool overlaps with other one of this address space

Part of our application, has to assign subnet mask with a specific convention to each virtual network connection.
all the virtual network interfaces are configured correctly on the host and I'm trying to connect them via macvlan to one of the containers.
Here's the networks part that fails:
version:2.4
networks:
    pool1:
        driver: macvlan
        driver_opts:
            parent: ens33
            macvlan_mode: bridge
        ipam:
            config:
            - subnet: 172.15.0.0/10
    pool2:
        driver: macvlan
        driver_opts:
            parent: ens34
            macvlan_mode: bridge
        ipam:
            config:
            - subnet: 172.16.0.0/10
    pool3:
        driver: macvlan
        driver_opts:
            parent: ens35
            macvlan_mode: bridge
        ipam:
            config:
            - subnet: 172.17.0.0/10
    pool4:
        driver: macvlan
        driver_opts:
            parent: ens36
            macvlan_mode: bridge
        ipam:
            config:
            - subnet: 172.150.150.0/24

Our virtual host network interfaces configuration:
ens33: 172.15.0.0 mask: 255.192.0.0
ens34: 172.16.0.0 mask: 255.192.0.0
ens35: 172.17.0.0 mask: 255.192.0.0
ens36: 172.150.150.0 mask: 255.255.255.0

each container has to have all the virtual network interfaces but needs to have a specific IP address as well.
How can I solve the pool overlaps problem?


text:
package com.ajah.syndicate.fetch;

import java.io.IOException;

import lombok.extern.java.Log;

import org.apache.http.client.ClientProtocolException;
import org.apache.http.client.methods.CloseableHttpResponse;
import org.apache.http.client.methods.HttpGet;
import org.apache.http.impl.client.CloseableHttpClient;
import org.apache.http.impl.client.HttpClientBuilder;
import org.apache.http.util.EntityUtils;
import org.jsoup.Jsoup;
import org.jsoup.nodes.Document;
import org.jsoup.nodes.Element;
import org.jsoup.select.Elements;
import org.springframework.beans.factory.annotation.Autowired;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Component;

import com.ajah.spring.jdbc.err.DataOperationException;
import com.ajah.syndicate.FeedSource;
import com.ajah.syndicate.data.FeedEntryManager;
import com.ajah.syndicate.data.FeedManager;
import com.ajah.syndicate.data.FeedSourceManager;

/**
 * Simple utility for finding {@link FeedSource}s.
 *
 * @author Eric F. Savage, code@efsavage.com.
 */
@Log
@Component
public class FeedDiscovery {

	@Autowired
	FeedSourceManager feedSourceManager;

	@Autowired
	FeedManager feedManager;

	@Autowired
	FeedEntryManager entryManager;

	/**
	 * Pulls a page and attempts to discover a feed for it via
	 * link[rel='alternate'].
	 *
	 * @param url
	 *            The URL of the page to try and discover the feed for.
	 * @return The feedsource if matched or created, may be null.
	 * @throws ClientProtocolException
	 *             If the page could not be pulled.
	 * @throws IOException
	 *             If the page could not be pulled.
	 * @throws DataOperationException
	 *             If a query could not be executed.
	 */
	public FeedSource discover(final String url) throws ClientProtocolException, IOException, DataOperationException {
		log.fine("Discovering feed for " + url);
		try (final CloseableHttpClient client = HttpClientBuilder.create().build()) {
			final HttpGet get = new HttpGet(url);
			try (final CloseableHttpResponse response = client.execute(get)) {
				final String html = EntityUtils.toString(response.getEntity());
				final Document doc = Jsoup.parse(html);
				final Elements alternateLinks = doc.select("link");
				for (final Element alternateLink : alternateLinks) {
					if ("alternate".equals(alternateLink.attr("rel"))) {
						if ("application/rss+xml".equals(alternateLink.attr("type"))) {
							log.fine("Found rss link " + alternateLink.attr("href"));
							final String rss = alternateLink.attr("href");
							return this.feedSourceManager.findOrCreateByFeedUrl(rss);
						}
						log.fine("Found alternate link " + alternateLink.html());
					} else {
						log.fine("Found link " + alternateLink.html());
					}
				}
			}
		}
		return null;
	}
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Indian Defence Review
Content Author
IDR Blog
Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces awards Rosoboronexport with Certificate of Honor
INS Kavaratti: A Versatile Anti-Submarine Warfare Platform
Thales Partnering with the Indian Air Force for a better tomorrow, today
NAVAL GROUP: A partner for all naval needs
Indian Navy conducts Naval Exercise JIMEX 20 with Japan
First Ferry of Rafale
Tata Lockheed Martin Aerostructures Ltd Names Kiran Dambala Chief Operating Officer
Boeing delivered 22 AH-64E Apache and 15 CH-47F(I) Chinook military helicopters to IAF
Russian Helicopters signs an events roadmap for Ka-226T localization in India
Home > News > Military & Aerospace > The Rafale: Indian Quest for Air Supremacy
The Rafale: Indian Quest for Air Supremacy
By Danvir Singh
Issue Vol. Apr-Jun 2020, (35.2) & Jul-Sep 2020, (35.3) | Date : 22 Sep , 2020
Newly arrived Rafale aircraft of IAF stopping in dispersal at Air Force Station Ambala on 29 Jul 2020.
The first five of India's new Rafale fighters touched down at Ambala air base on July 29, 2020. Accordingly 31 more will follow and thus they will form two squadrons of 18 each by the end of 2021. The second squadron is planned at Hasimara in the east.
These Rafale fighters will definitely be making up some of the huge capability deficiency of the Indian Air Force. Though India's larger requirement is of 126 such jets. The Indian Air Force has long needed refurbishing, but the defence of India has suffered due to collusion of foreign arms dealers with the corrupt politico-bureaucratic nexus and in some cases even the military was party to the crime. All this along with the infamous bureaucratic red tape and budgetary constraints, they have all towards perennial delays. The nation has suffered.
Now, the arrival of the new fighters—the first in over 20 years—in the middle of an unprecedented border face-off against China, will be a boost for Indian military capability as well as morale. But it won't do much to change the hard reality that, as an air power, India is falling far behind.
However, the Rafale fighters even though five in numbers, bear that potential to alter any course of short high intensity conflict in a border situation with Pakistan or China.
When compared with Chinese JF 20 supposedly a fifth generation aircraft, Rafale is an omni-role aircraft. It can carry out at least four missions in one sortie while the J-20 cannot carry out multiple missions is one go. JF 20 is reported to be underpowered and not so stealthy while the Rafale is a battle proven technology. As per the senior Indian Air Force officer, Indian radars have been able to pick up these JF 20s. The Chinese did try to develop an engine but failed. They had to go for Russian engines, so the thrust-to-weight ratio is not favourable for an aircraft with the declared capability.
The Rafale's unchallenged capability lies in the superior technology that binds this multi role fighter jet. The India-specific changes and modifications have also been carried out by Dassault. This adds to its already high potency in the South Asian skies rivalling out the unmatched contenders like the JF 17 and much advanced JF 20 quiet easily.
These modifications involve a mix of hardware and software changes, including an improved infrared search-and-track capability, the addition of an Israeli helmet-mounted display and sight system, changes to the electronically scanned radar, a new device for jamming low-band radio frequencies, integration of an Israeli-created decoy system, an upgraded radar altimeter, expanded navigation aids, and a more robust cold start system for the engines to make them suitable for winter operations from the Air Force's Himalayan bases.
India's newly-acquired five Rafale fighters are conducting exercises in an endeavour to seamlessly fit into India's operational environment as early as possible. They are likely to be operationally ready by the end of August 2020.
So what is that technological bind that sets Rafale in a superior league from rest of its aerial challengers in the skies of South Asia.
In modern warfare, air dominance from day one is a must, so that air-to-ground and air-to-sea operations can be conducted safely and efficiently.
In the course of asymmetrical and counter-insurgency conflicts, the air arm also remains at the forefront of the military effort, its flexibility and firing power helping ensure that allied forces prevail.
Omnirole by design, the Rafale, with its 'Omnirole' capabilities, fully complies with the requirement to carry out the widest range of roles with the smallest number of aircraft.
The Rafale participates in permanent "Quick Reaction Alert" (QRA) / air-defense / air sovereignty missions, power projection and deployments for external missions, deep strike missions, air support for ground forces, reconnaissance missions, pilot training sorties and nuclear deterrence duties.
Lessons learned from the latest conflicts where air power was used, can be summarized into four overarching expectations about weapon systems by political decision makers:–
Versatility, is that capability, with the same system, to perform different missions,
Interoperability, or the ability to fight alongside aircrafts and systems from diverse sources, like the US, Russian or Israel, using common procedures and standards agreements, and collaborating and communicating in real-time with other systems,
Flexibility, which can be illustrated by the ability to conduct several different missions in the course of the same sortie ('Omnirole' capability). With this capability, it is possible to switch instantly on the demand of a political decision maker, from a coercion mission ('strike force') to a preventive mission (a dissuasive low-altitude, high-speed 'show of force'), or even to cancel a mission until the last second (reversibility),
Survivability, that is the capability to survive in a dense threat environment thanks to stealth and / or to advanced electronic warfare systems.
The Rafale omnirole aircraft is capable of seven types of combat operations through a very wide range of missions:–
Air-defense / air-superiority,
Anti-Access/Aera Denial,
Close air support,
Dynamic Targeting,
Air-to-ground precision strike / interdiction,
Anti-ship attacks,
Nuclear deterrence,
Buddy-buddy refuelling.
Fully optimised airframe, the Rafale features a delta wing with close-coupled canards. In-house research in computational fluid dynamics has shown the specific benefits of close coupling between the wings and the canards: it ensures a wide range of centre of gravity positions for all flight conditions, as well as excellent handling throughout the whole flight envelope.
The close-coupled canards / delta wing configuration is key to the combat performance of the Rafale: even at high angle-of-attack, it remains fully agile, and its range performance in strike missions with heavy weapon loads is unmatched for such a compact design.
An advanced digital 'Fly-by-Wire' (FBW) Flight Control System (FCS) provides for longitudinal stability and superior handling performance. The FCS is quadruple redundant with three digital channels and one separately designed analogue channel, with no mechanical back-up: design independence between channels is key to avoiding simultaneous anomalies on all channels.
The Flight Control System of the Rafale attains the highest level of flight safety with over one million flight hours without a single accident caused by the FCS. The Rafale is safe and easy to fly in all flight regimes, featuring the same precise, yet benign handling performance in all load-out configurations throughout the flight envelope.
The flight control system of the Rafale offers auto flight in terrain following mode in all weather conditions, allowing the Rafale to fly unobserved in the opponent's airspace: an important survivability factor in a high threat environment.
The radar cross section of the airframe has been kept to the lowest possible value by selecting the most adequate outer mould line and materials. Most of the stealth design features are classified, but some of them are clearly visible, such as the serrated patterns on the trailing edge of the wings and canards.
Composite materials are extensively used in the Rafale and they account for 70% of the wetted area. They also account for the 40% increase in the max take-off weight to empty weight ratio compared with traditional airframes built of aluminium and titanium.
Wide range of smart and discreet sensors, Rafale is equipped with an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) RBE2 radar provides a wide range of functions:–
All-aspect look-up and look-down detection and tracking of multiple air targets for close combat and long-range interception, in all weather and in severe jamming environments,
Ability to track targets in, or out of the search domain, bringing the ultimate advantage in air combat,
Real time generation of three-dimensional maps for terrain-following above uncharted terrain in blind conditions. The Rafale is the sole new generation combat aircraft to currently propose such a function,
Real time generation of high resolution 2D ground maps for navigation updates and detection, identification and designation of ground targets,
Detection and tracking of multiple naval targets.
The RBE2-AESA is fully compatible in terms of detection range with the upcoming long range METEOR air-to-air missile. The AESA offers an unprecedented growth-potential for the future.
Developed by Thales, the Front Sector Optronics (FSO) system is fully integrated with other systems in the aircraft, and it provides a multi-spectral threat warning capability against hostile radars, missiles and lasers.
The SPECTRA system carries out reliable long-range detection, identification and localisation of threats, allowing the pilot to instantly select the most effective defensive measures based on combinations of radar jamming, infrared or radar decoying and evasive manoeuvres.
The angular localisation performance of the SPECTRA sensors makes it possible to accurately locate ground threats in order to avoid them, or to target them for destruction with precision guided munitions.
The outstanding capability of SPECTRA regarding airborne threat localisation, is one of the keys of the Rafale's superior situational awareness.
Also instrumental in SPECTRA's performance is a threat library that can be easily defined, integrated and updated on short notice by users in their own country, and in full autonomy.
SPECTRA now includes a new generation missile warning system that offers increased detection performance against the latest threats.
Operating in the optronic wavelengths, it is immune to radar jamming and it provides covert long-range detection and identification, high resolution angular tracking and laser range-finding for air, sea and ground targets.
Sheer power of multisensory data fusion. The net-centric capability of the Rafale hinges on its open architecture, its data fusion software and its compatibility with a variety of data links, which "plug" the Rafale into the integrated battle-space.
A secure high-rate data link is provided to share data in combined air operations in real time with other aircraft in the formation, airborne and surface command and control centres, tactical air controllers or other friendly assets.
As a net-centric capable asset, the Rafale can exchange images. The ROVER (Remotely Operated Video Enhanced Receiver) is an element of this capability which allows aircrews and forward air controllers on the ground to share videos or images of the target. It helps prevent blue-on-blue incidents and collateral damage, a decisive advantage in peacekeeping operations.
The Rafale's interoperability, as part of a multinational operation, has been demonstrated on countless occasions, and Link 16 as well as non-NATO solutions can be provided to meet various customers' requirements.
The IR sensor of the Talios pod operates in the mid-wave infrared band and is coupled to a high-resolution new generation TV sensor.
For both strategic and tactical reconnaissance missions, the French Armed Forces have adopted the new generation Thales AREOS reconnaissance system for the Rafale.
As demonstrated in Libya, Mali, the Central African Republic, Iraq and Syria, this high-tech, day and night equipment can be used in a wide range of scenarios, at stand-off distances, from high to low altitudes.
To shorten the intelligence gathering cycle and accelerate the tempo of operations, the AREOS pod is fitted with a data link which allows high resolution images to be transmitted back to military decision makers in real time.
What makes the essential difference is the Rafale's 'multi-sensor data fusion' process running on data provided by all the sensors of the aircraft.
In essence, the 'multi-sensor data fusion' concept implemented into the Rafale allows the pilot to act as a true 'tactical decision maker', rather than being only a sensor operator.
The core of these enhanced capabilities of the Rafale lies in a 'Modular Data Processing Unit' (MDPU) incorporating "commercial off the shelf" (COTS) elements. It is composed of up to 19 flight "line-replaceable units" (LRUs), with 18 of them individually providing 50 times the processing power of a typical mission computer employed in previous generation fighters.
The MDPU is the cornerstone of the upgradeability of the Rafale. It allows a seamless integration of new weapons and new capabilities to maintain the war-fighting relevance of the Rafale over the years as tactical requirements evolve, and as the computer industry keeps rolling out new generations of processors and software.
The 'multi-sensor data fusion' provides a link between the battle-space surrounding the aircraft and the pilot's brain with its unique ability to grasp the outcome of tactical situations and make sensible decisions.
Implementation of the 'multi-sensor data fusion' into the Rafaletranslates into accurate, reliable and strong tracks, uncluttered displays, reduced pilot workload, quicker pilot response, and eventually into increased situational awareness.
It is a full automated process carried out in three steps:–
Establishing consolidated track files and refining primary information provided by the sensors,
Overcoming individual sensor limitations related to wavelength / frequency, field of regard, angular and distance resolution, etc, by sharing track information received from all the sensors,
Assessing the confidence level of consolidated tracks, suppressing redundant track symbols and decluttering the displays.
A unique Man-Machine Interface (MMI) Dassault Aviation has developed a very easy to use pilot interface (MMI), combining the "Hands on Throttle and Stick" (HOTAS) control concept with touch screens.
Rafale is equipped with full range of advance weapon systems. The mission system of the Rafale has the potential to integrate a variety of current and future armaments. The Indian Rafale operates the following weapons:–
The MICA air-to-air Beyond Visual Range (BVR) interception, combat and self-defense missiles, in their IR (heat-seeking) and EM (active radar homing) The MICA can be used within visual range (WVR) and beyond visual range (BVR).
The METEOR very long-range air-to-air missile, The METEOR very long-range rocket and ram-jet powered air-to-air EM missile. Its combination with the Rafale weapon system is a real paradigm change in air to air affairs.
The HAMMER (standing for Highly Agile and Manoeuvrable Munition Extended Range) modular, rocket-boosted air-to-ground precision guided weapon series, fitted with INS/GPS or INS/GPS/IIR (imaging infra-red) guidance kits, or with the upcoming INS/GPS/laser guidance
The SCALP long-range stand-off missile,
Laser-guided bombs with different warheads from 500lbs to 2,000 lbs
Classic bombs non guided
The 2500 rounds/min NEXTER 30M791 30 mm internal cannon, available on both single and two-seaters.
In the cockpit of Rafale, pilot relies on a highly integrated suite of equipment with the following capabilities:–
For short-term actions, head-up flying using a wide-field-of-view holographic "Head-up Display" (HUD),
For medium and long-term actions, analysis of the tactical situation as a whole (the "big picture"), using a multi-image Head-Level Display (HLD). The HLD picture is focused at the same distance as the HUD picture to allow for fast eye transitions between head-up and head-down displays and the external world's view,
Management of system resources via the left and right colour touch screens.
The comprehensive design of the cockpit provides for everything that aircrews can expect from an 'omnirole' fighter: a wide field of view at the front, on both sides, and at the rear, a superior agility, an increased G-protection with 29° tilted seats, and an efficient air conditioning system demonstrated under all climates.
Mission ready Rafale, with its 10-tonne empty weight, the RAFALE is fitted with 14 hard points (13 on the Rafale-M). Five of them are capable of drop tanks and heavy ordnance. Total external load capacity is more than nine tonnes (20,000 lbs.). Hence, RAFALE can lift the equivalent of its own empty weight in payloads.
'Buddy-buddy' refuelling missions can be carried out in portions of the airspace out of reach of dedicated and vulnerable tanker aircraft.
With its outstanding load-carrying capability and its advanced mission system, the Rafale can carry out both air-to-ground strikes, as well as air-to-air attacks and interceptions during the same sortie.
It is capable of performing several actions at the same time, such as firing air-to-air missiles during a very low altitude penetration phase: a clear demonstration of the true 'omnirole' capability and outstanding survivability of the Rafale.
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The views expressed are of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of the Indian Defence Review.
Danvir Singh
Associate Editor, Indian Defence Review, former Commanding Officer, 9 Sikh LI and author of book "Kashmir's Death Trap: Tales of Perfidy and Valour".
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Great Shift TG Captions: Pixie (Part 2) - TG Captions from The New Great Shift Captions!
Francis felt like a total freak. Not only had he been turned into a woman by a weird magical fish, he had the strangest features accentuated. He had such skinny limbs and large eyes. He felt almost inhuman. In a way he was. Though he hadn't realized it yet, the fish had made him half-pixie. The strange thing was that when he went out, everyone just seemed to see him as a normal woman. While he was out, he noticed others who with proportions here and there. How had he never noticed such people before? He spoke with one who seemed genuinely shocked by his confusion. She sat him down, telling him that he must be a new pixie. Francis was confused. The woman continued. Only pixies could really see other pixies, to human beings, they just looked like normal humans. Being a pixie also meant having magical powers. Francis's head was spinning with all the knowledge he was getting. It all seemed so unreal. But his head perked up at the words "magic powers." Maybe there was an upside to this transformation after all!


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Arkansas Blog
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Project lists public housing project inspection scores, including higher failure rate in Arkansas
Chancellor Drale, Oliverio, Stewart Honored For Supporting Military Student At UA Little Rock
Tree of Life Seeds
University of Arkansas at Little Rock Chancellor Christina Drale, Edie Stewart, assistant vice chancellor for enrollment management, and Kathy Oliverio, director of military student success, were recognized for their efforts to support military service members this month.
Kaycee Greenwood, assistant director of military student success and a doctoral student in education at UA Little Rock, nominated Drale, Stewart, and Oliverio for the Service Member Patriot Award.
Members of the National Guard or Reserve or their spouses can nominate individual supervisors and bosses for support provided to the nominating Service member and their family. The Patriot Award reflects the efforts made to support citizen warriors through a wide range of measures including flexible schedules, time off, caring for families, and granting leaves of absence if needed.
Greenwood serves as a master sergeant with the Air Force Reserve. She joined the Air Force in 2007 and served in active duty until 2018 when she was ready for a career change from maintaining military aircraft.
"It wasn't what I wanted to do with my life," Greenwood said. "I had received a master's degree in higher education administration and knew I wanted to work at a university. If I stayed in the military for 10 more years, I knew the field would have changed too much to use my degree."
After leaving active duty, Greenwood was hired as an assistant registrar at the University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College. She loved her internship with Kathy Oliverio, UA Little Rock's director of military student success, so much that she immediately applied for the assistant director position at UA Little Rock when it became available earlier this year.
"The Military Student Success Center is a one-stop-shop for our military students," Greenwood said. "Some of these students have no experience with college, and they come into the office completely lost. It's really rewarding to help them find their place in college."
Chancellor Christina Drale (left), Kathy Oliverio (middle), and Edie Stewart (right) stand in from of the C-130 military aircraft before departure.
Greenwood decided to nominate Drale and Stewart for the award because the university has provided so much flexibility and support for her work with the Air Force Reserve and her classes.
"I've had no problems with taking off work for drill weekends," Greenwood said. "Edie helped so much in the military center that it's unbelievable. I couldn't ask for a better university. I am so appreciative of Edie, Kathy, and Dr. Drale for their help in my career and studies that I wanted to nominate them for this award."
The three were recognized by the Employer Support of the Guard and the Reserve, a U.S. Department of Defense program, with other Patriot Award recipients during a ceremony at Little Rock Air Force Base Nov. 3. Sen. Jane English presented the awards.
"I was so proud to receive this award," Stewart said. "I am so grateful for our military service members and veterans. Their sacrifices, including those of their families, is something we need to be thankful for every day." Stewart added, " My dad was a Navy Vietnam veteran, and my son Matt graduated from the Naval Academy and just started flight school in Florida, so service members have a special place in my heart."
Stewart said that it's important to provide support for military students and employees like Greenwood who have sacrificed so much for the country.
"Kaycee really understands the background of military students," Stewart said. "She connects well with students and can put herself in their place. As civilians, we don't understand the difficulties of military life, but Kaycee can understand their sacrifices in a way only a service member can. We appreciate Kaycee and Kathy and everything they do for our students and our country."
Edie Stewart (left), assistant vice chancellor for enrollment management, and Chancellor Christina Drale (right) were recognized for their efforts to support military service members this month with a flight in a C-130 military aircraft.
Drale, whose favorite part of the experience was taking a ride on a C-130 military aircraft around central Arkansas, said the award showcases UA Little Rock's commitment toward supporting military students.
"I was very honored to receive the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Patriot Award," Drale said. "I think the award really goes to the UA Little Rock staff and faculty who are working with military students every day and trying to make sure that they have the support that they need. We are very proud to be a military-friendly campus and to have the Purple Heart University designation. I was happy to accept the award on behalf of everyone at UA Little Rock who ensures that our military students thrive. And it was pretty cool to take a ride in a C-130 too!"
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Archbishop Releases Statement on Biden Inauguration
Statement on the Inauguration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr., as 46th President of the United States of America
Most Reverend José H. Gomez
Archbishop of Los Angeles,
President, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
My prayers are with our new President and his family today.
I am praying that God grant him wisdom and courage to lead this great nation and that God help him to meet the tests of these times, to heal the wounds caused by this pandemic, to ease our intense political and cultural divisions, and to bring people together with renewed dedication to America's founding purposes, to be one nation under God committed to liberty and equality for all.
Catholic bishops are not partisan players in our nation's politics. We are pastors responsible for the souls of millions of Americans and we are advocates for the needs of all our neighbors. In every community across the country, Catholic parishes, schools, hospitals, and ministries form an essential culture of compassion and care, serving women, children, and the elderly, the poor and sick, the imprisoned, the migrant, and the marginalized, no matter what their race or religion.
When we speak on issues in American public life, we try to guide consciences, and we offer principles. These principles are rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the social teachings of his Church. Jesus Christ revealed God's plan of love for creation and revealed the truth about the human person, who is created in God's image, endowed with God-given dignity, rights and responsibilities, and called to a transcendent destiny.
Based on these truths, which are reflected in the Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights, the bishops and Catholic faithful carry out Christ's commandment to love God and love our neighbors by working for an America that protects human dignity, expands equality and opportunities for every person, and is open-hearted towards the suffering and weak.
For many years now, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has tried to help Catholics and others of good will in their reflections on political issues through a publication we call Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship. The most recent edition addresses a wide range of concerns. Among them: abortion, euthanasia, the death penalty, immigration, racism, poverty, care for the environment, criminal justice reform, economic development, and international peace.
On these and other issues, our duty to love and our moral principles lead us to prudential judgments and positions that do not align neatly with the political categories of left or right or the platforms of our two major political parties. We work with every President and every Congress. On some issues we find ourselves more on the side of Democrats, while on others we find ourselves standing with Republicans. Our priorities are never partisan. We are Catholics first, seeking only to follow Jesus Christ faithfully and to advance his vision for human fraternity and community.
I look forward to working with President Biden and his administration, and the new Congress. As with every administration, there will be areas where we agree and work closely together and areas where we will have principled disagreement and strong opposition.
Working with President Biden will be unique, however, as he is our first president in 60 years to profess the Catholic faith. In a time of growing and aggressive secularism in American culture, when religious believers face many challenges, it will be refreshing to engage with a President who clearly understands, in a deep and personal way, the importance of religious faith and institutions. Mr. Biden's piety and personal story, his moving witness to how his faith has brought him solace in times of darkness and tragedy, his longstanding commitment to the Gospel's priority for the poor — all of this I find hopeful and inspiring.
At the same time, as pastors, the nation's bishops are given the duty of proclaiming the Gospel in all its truth and power, in season and out of season, even when that teaching is inconvenient or when the Gospel's truths run contrary to the directions of the wider society and culture. So, I must point out that our new President has pledged to pursue certain policies that would advance moral evils and threaten human life and dignity, most seriously in the areas of abortion, contraception, marriage, and gender. Of deep concern is the liberty of the Church and the freedom of believers to live according to their consciences.
Our commitments on issues of human sexuality and the family, as with our commitments in every other area — such as abolishing the death penalty or seeking a health care system and economy that truly serves the human person — are guided by Christ's great commandment to love and to stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters, especially the most vulnerable.
For the nation's bishops, the continued injustice of abortion remains the "preeminent priority." Preeminent does not mean "only." We have deep concerns about many threats to human life and dignity in our society. But as Pope Francis teaches, we cannot stay silent when nearly a million unborn lives are being cast aside in our country year after year through abortion.
Abortion is a direct attack on life that also wounds the woman and undermines the family. It is not only a private matter, it raises troubling and fundamental questions of fraternity, solidarity, and inclusion in the human community. It is also a matter of social justice. We cannot ignore the reality that abortion rates are much higher among the poor and minorities, and that the procedure is regularly used to eliminate children who would be born with disabilities.
Rather than impose further expansions of abortion and contraception, as he has promised, I am hopeful that the new President and his administration will work with the Church and others of good will. My hope is that we can begin a dialogue to address the complicated cultural and economic factors that are driving abortion and discouraging families. My hope, too, is that we can work together to finally put in place a coherent family policy in this country, one that acknowledges the crucial importance of strong marriages and parenting to the well-being of children and the stability of communities. If the President, with full respect for the Church's religious freedom, were to engage in this conversation, it would go a long way toward restoring the civil balance and healing our country's needs.
President Biden's call for national healing and unity is welcome on all levels. It is urgently needed as we confront the trauma in our country caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the social isolation that has only worsened the intense and long-simmering divisions among our fellow citizens.
As believers, we understand that healing is a gift that we can only receive from the hand of God. We know, too, that real reconciliation requires patient listening to those who disagree with us and a willingness to forgive and move beyond desires for reprisal. Christian love calls us to love our enemies and bless those who oppose us, and to treat others with the same compassion that we want for ourselves.
We are all under the watchful eye of God, who alone knows and can judge the intentions of our hearts. I pray that God will give our new President, and all of us, the grace to seek the common good with all sincerity.
I entrust all our hopes and anxieties in this new moment to the tender heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of Christ and the patroness of this exceptional nation. May she guide us in the ways of peace and obtain for us wisdom and the grace of a true patriotism and love of country.


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Die Bahnstrecke Sélestat–Lesseux-Frapelle war eine eingleisige, nicht elektrifizierte französische Bahnstrecke, die die Vogesen in West-Ost-Richtung querte.

Geografie
Die Strecke verband die Bahnhöfe von Sélestat an der Bahnstrecke Strasbourg–Basel und Lesseux-Frapelle an der Bahnstrecke Strasbourg–Saint-Dié. Die Bahnstrecke Sélestat–Lesseux-Frapelle führte über Lièpvre und Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines. Bis 2018 wurde der Abschnitt zwischen Sélestat und La Vancelle noch im Güterverkehr befahren. Die übrige Strecke ist stillgelegt.

Die Strecke wird von SNCF Réseau unter der Nummer 116000 geführt. Zuvor wurde sie als Abschnitt der Strecke Nancy-Ville–Lunéville–Sélestat" geführt.

Geschichte

Erster Abschnitt
Ein kaiserliches Dekret vom 14. Juni 1861 stellte das öffentliche Interesse an einer Zweigbahn von Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines nach Sélestat als Anschluss an die Bahnstrecke Strasbourg–Basel fest. Der Minister für öffentliche Arbeiten erteilte am 1. Mai 1863 der Compagnie des chemins de fer de l'Est (EST) die Konzession für die Strecke, was durch ein kaiserliches Dekret vom 11. Juni 1863 genehmigt wurde.

Die EST errichtete die Strecke unverzüglich und nahm sie am 29. Dezember 1864 in Betrieb.

Zweiter Abschnitt
Die nach dem Ersten Weltkrieg wieder an den Rhein verlegte französische Ostgrenze erforderte militärstrategisch möglichst direkte Verbindungen aus dem französischen Hinterland an den Fluss. Eines dieser Projekte war ein Anschluss der von Sélestat bis Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines führenden Strecke an das französische Eisenbahnnetz westlich der Vogesen. Dies war der Hauptgrund 1929 durch Gesetz ein öffentliches Interesse für den Bau einer Bahn zwischen Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines und Saint-Dié für festzustellen. Mit dem Bau wurde die Administration des chemins de fer d'Alsace et de Lorraine (AL) beauftragt. Im Zuge der Bauarbeiten wurde der ursprüngliche Kopfbahnhof von Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines aufgegeben und ein neuer Durchgangsbahnhof angelegt. Baulich aufwändigstes Bauwerk der Strecke war der Scheiteltunnel, der Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines-Tunnel, mit 6874 m Länge. Es war der längste Eisenbahntunnel, der vollständig auf französischem Gebiet lag.

Der französische Staatspräsidenten Albert Lebrun weihte die Strecke am 8. August 1937 ein. Der Industrielle und Politiker Maurice Burrus ließ aus diesem Anlass einen Tunnel aus Schokolade anfertigen, den die anwesenden Kinder nach der Eröffnung "plündern" durften.

Niedergang

Nachdem unter gewandelten politischen Verhältnissen nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg der militär-strategische Wert des Tunnels entfallen war und zunehmender Individualverkehr das sowieso schon schwache Aufkommen an Reisenden weiter sinken ließ, wurde der Eisenbahnverkehr im Abschnitt von Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines bis Lesseux-Frapelle zum 2. Juni 1973 aufgegeben. Der Scheiteltunnel wurde – zunächst zeitlich begrenzt – in einen Straßentunnel umgebaut. Er trägt heute die Bezeichnung Maurice-Lemaire-Tunnel.

Der Abschnitt von Sélestat bis Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines wurde am 2. Januar 1980 für den Personenverkehr geschlossen, der Abschnitt von La Vancelle und dem dortigen Gewerbegebiet Bois-l'Abbesse bis Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines zum 1. Oktober 1990 dann auch für den Güterverkehr und 1996/97 stillgelegt. Die Trasse wird nun als Radweg genutzt. Der verbleibende Abschnitt von Sélestat bis Bois-l'Abbesse wurde bis zum Januar 2018 weiterbetrieben, um die Hartmann-Fabrik zu bedienen. Es war das letzte Unternehmen, das dort den Schienenverkehr nutzte. Nach einer Tariferhöhung verlängerte es jedoch den Vertrag mit dem es bedienenden Eisenbahnverkehrsunternehmen nicht, was das Ende des Verkehrs auf der Strecke bedeutete. Daraufhin verabschiedeten die Abgeordneten der Communauté de communes du Val d'Argent eine Resolution, in der sie SNCF Réseau aufforderten, die Bahnstrecke zu erhalten und zu modernisieren, um Güterverkehr weiter zu ermöglichen.

Literatur
 Eisenbahnatlas Frankreich. Bd. 1: Nord – Atlas ferroviaire de la France. Tome 1: Nord. Schweers + Wall, Aachen 2015. ISBN 978-3-89494-143-7, Taf. 55, A1, A2, B2, C2.
 André Schontz, Arsène Felten und Marcel Gourlot: Le chemin de fer en Lorraine. Éditions Serpenoise, Metz 1999. ISBN 2-87692-414-5, S. 272–275.

Weblinks
 David Bouvier: Construction et rénovation du tunnel Maurice Lemaire (1841–2008) – mit zahlreichen historischen Fotos und Plänen.

Anmerkungen

Einzelnachweise

Bahnstrecke im Elsass
Bahnstrecke in Grand Est
Bahnstrecke der Reichseisenbahnen in Elsaß-Lothringen
Bauwerk in Sélestat
Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Natalia asked: Due to the last accident on eastbound State Road 84 that killed 2 cyclists and injured many others I am concerned about going out there again to ride by myself or in a group.
I heard it is illegal to have a SAG vehicle protecting us while we ride. Is that true? If so, why is that?
I also heard that we would need to ask for permission to every county individually to have the SAG vehicle. We ride through many different counties every weekend and it would make it really hard to ask individual permissions.
The statute that might cause you problems with a motor vehicle behind the group without a permit is this.
Note that it says "motor vehicle" which excludes bicycles and other human powered vehicles. I don't think the phrase "necessary for safe operation" above would apply to the group.
Some might try to use this section of the same statute to justify your proposal.
(e) Any special hazard exists with respect to pedestrians or other traffic …..
In the event of a citation, I don't believe you would be successful since, even with the unfortunate circumstances, the roadway you are using is probably not very different and no more hazardous than many others in the state.
I am aware that certain ride groups have had a marked law enforcement vehicle with lights join regularly scheduled rides to do what you suggest and control traffic at certain intersections. I don't know if that would require a permit or cost for each county.
Considering the amazing wordsmithing some bicycle advocacy groups and even FDOT have engaged in to reach the conclusion that § 316.2065(5)(a) permits a bicyclist to "control the lane" if it is less than 14′ wide, I think a case could be made for the OP's suggestion.
This collision happened on a roadway divided into two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction with a speed limit of 55 mph. The SAG vehicle would be traveling at a speed that is dramatically slower than that of prevailing traffic, but any traffic that would be approaching from the rear could simply move into the adjacent lane and pass the slower motor vehicle . . . and coincidentally, the bicyclists ahead of it.
Although some motorists might be slowed temporarily by the SAG vehicle, could an LEO make a defensible argument that the vehicle was traveling so slowly that it was impeding or blocking the normal and reasonable movement of traffic at this particular location?
Furthermore, considering that these same advocates claim that bicyclists are somehow endowed with the right to determine what constitutes their personal safety ("the statutes grants me the right to 'control the lane' because I have deemed it to be safer for ME"), why could the driver of the SAG vehicle not be able to claim that he or she considers driving at 15 mph to be a safe speed for him or her?
I'm all for safety, and safety goes both ways, for the cyclists and for the vehicle operators. The main problem with the cyclists is that they do not respect the law.
It is common to see a group of over cyclists taking over an entire lane. This is not only unsafe, but also unlawful. The law is clear in that no more than two abreast can ride together. Why can't they form a line of two, and not take over the entire lane?
Cycling groups are well aware of the biking laws and enforce those laws during group rides. However, I would admit that there are individuals who are either not aware, or simply do not respect cycling regulations.
As per Florida Statue 316.2065, it states that "Persons riding two abreast may not impede traffic when traveling at less than the normal speed of traffic." Basically, if we're riding on single lane roads we cannot ride two abreast or more because we will be impeding flow of traffic, unless the road is not wide enough for a vehicle to pass a cyclist safely, at least 3 feeet. However, when riding on roads that have two lanes or more we can lawfully "take the lane" because cars can move to the next lane, therefore we're not impeding traffic.
Ernesto, I would agree with you provided the cyclists still adhere to the law by riding on the lane two abreast.
While technically the byciclists taking over an entire lane may not be impeding the traffic since there is an additional lane, there still a violation for not riding two abreast.
It is just unfortunate that the recent situation has provoked much discussion on the matter, when we can all be proactive and avoid similar accidents.
While there are many responsible drivers and cyclists on our streets, there are a few (drivers and cyclists) that do not respect basic traffic law.
For a full discussion of impeding traffic, please see this post and the links therein.


text:
Definition - What does Internet Security mean?
Internet security is a catch-all term for a very broad issue covering security for transactions made over the Internet. Generally, Internet security encompasses browser security, the security of data entered through a Web form, and overall authentication and protection of data sent via Internet Protocol.
Techopedia explains Internet Security
Internet security relies on specific resources and standards for protecting data that gets sent through the Internet. This includes various kinds of encryption such as Pretty Good Privacy (PGP). Other aspects of a secure Web setup includes firewalls, which block unwanted traffic, and anti-malware, anti-spyware and anti-virus programs that work from specific networks or devices to monitor Internet traffic for dangerous attachments.
Internet security is generally becoming a top priority for both businesses and governments. Good Internet security protects financial details and much more of what is handled by a business or agency's servers and network hardware. Insufficient Internet security can threaten to collapse an e-commerce business or any other operation where data gets routed over the Web.
Platform Security
Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA)
Wi-Fi Protected Access II (WPA2)
INFOGRAPHIC: 4 Major Criminals Caught by Computer Technology
3 Defenses Against Cyberattack That No Longer Work
Cybersecurity: The Big, Profitable Field Techies Are Overlooking
Money Laundering, the Internet Way
12 DNS Records Explained
How are top enterprises effectively applying IoT to their BI strategies?
What is the difference between security and privacy?
What is the difference between security architecture and security design?
How can passwords be stored securely in a database?
Securitye-CommerceEncryptionInternet


text:
IntelliJ Platform Plugin SDK Help
Virtual File System
The Virtual File System (VFS) is a component of the IntelliJ Platform that encapsulates most of its activity for working with files represented as Virtual File.
It serves the following main purposes:
Providing a universal API for working with files regardless of their actual location (on disk, in an archive, on an HTTP server, etc.)
Tracking file modifications and providing both old and new versions of the file content when a change is detected.
Providing a possibility to associate additional persistent data with a file in the VFS.
To provide the last two features, the VFS manages a persistent snapshot of some of the user's hard disk contents. The snapshot stores only those files which have been requested at least once through the VFS API, and is asynchronously updated to match the changes happening on the disk.
The snapshot is application level, not project level - so, if some file (for example, a class in the JDK) is referenced by multiple projects, only one copy of its contents will be stored in the VFS.
All VFS access operations go through the snapshot.
If some information is requested through the VFS APIs and is not available in the snapshot, it is loaded from disk and stored into the snapshot. If the information is available in the snapshot, the snapshot data is returned. The contents of files and the lists of files in directories are stored in the snapshot only if that specific information was accessed. Otherwise, only file metadata like name, length, timestamp, attributes are stored.
This means that the state of the file system and the file contents displayed in the IntelliJ Platform UI comes from the snapshot, which may not always match the disk's actual contents. For example, in some cases, deleted files can still be visible in the UI for some time before the deletion is picked up by the IntelliJ Platform.
The snapshot is updated from disk during refresh operations, which generally happen asynchronously. All write operations made through the VFS are synchronous - i.e., the contents are saved to disk immediately.
A refresh operation synchronizes the state of a part of the VFS with the actual disk contents. Refresh operations are explicitly invoked by the IntelliJ Platform or plugin code - i.e., when a file is changed on disk while the IDE is running, the change will not be immediately picked up by the VFS. The VFS will be updated during the next refresh operation, which includes the file in its scope.
IntelliJ Platform refreshes the entire project contents asynchronously on startup. By default, it performs a refresh operation when the user switches to it from another app. Still, users can turn this off via Settings/Preferences | Appearance & Behavior | System Settings | Synchronize external changes[...].
On Windows, Mac, and Linux, a native file watcher process is started that receives file change notifications from the file system and reports them to the IntelliJ Platform. If a file watcher is available, a refresh operation looks only at the files that have been reported as changed by the file watcher. If no file watcher is present, a refresh operation walks through all directories and files in the refresh scope.
Invoke internal actionTools | Internal Actions | VFS | Show Watched VFS Roots to see all registered roots for current project.
Refresh operations are based on file timestamps. If a file's contents were changed, but its timestamp remained the same, the IntelliJ Platform will not pick up the updated contents.
There is currently no facility for removing files from the snapshot. If a file was loaded there once, it remains there forever unless it was deleted from the disk, and a refresh operation was called on one of its parent directories.
The VFS itself does not honor ignored files listed in Settings/Preferences | Editor | File Types and folders to ignore and excluded folders listed in Project Structure | Modules | Sources | Excluded. If the application code accesses them, the VFS will load and return their contents. In most cases, the ignored files and excluded folders must be skipped from processing by higher-level code.
During the lifetime of a running instance of an IntelliJ Platform IDE, multiple VirtualFile instances may correspond to the same disk file. They are equal, have the same hashCode, and share the user data.
Synchronous and Asynchronous Refreshes
From the point of view of the caller, refresh operations can be either synchronous or asynchronous. In fact, the refresh operations are executed according to their own threading policy. The synchronous flag simply means that the calling thread will be blocked until the refresh operation (which will most likely run on a different thread) is completed.
Both synchronous and asynchronous refreshes can be initiated from any thread. If a refresh is initiated from a background thread, the calling thread must not hold a read action, because otherwise, a deadlock would occur. See IntelliJ Platform Architectural Overview for more details on the threading model and read/write actions.
The same threading requirements also apply to functions like LocalFileSystem.refreshAndFindFileByPath(), which perform a partial refresh if the file with the specified path is not found in the snapshot.
In nearly all cases, using asynchronous refreshes is strongly preferred. If there is some code that needs to be executed after the refresh is complete, the code should be passed as a postRunnable parameter to one of the refresh methods:
RefreshQueue.createSession()
VirtualFile.refresh()
In some cases, synchronous refreshes can cause deadlocks, depending on which locks are held by the thread invoking the refresh operation.
Virtual File System Events
All changes happening in the virtual file system, either due to refresh operations or caused by user actions, are reported as virtual file system events. VFS events are always fired in the event dispatch thread and in a write action.
The most efficient way to listen to VFS events is to implement BulkFileListener and to subscribe with it to the VirtualFileManager.VFS_CHANGES topic. A non-blocking variant AsyncFileListener is also available in 2019.2 or later. See How do I get notified when VFS changes? for implementation details.
VFS listeners are application level and will receive events for changes happening in all the projects opened by the user. You may need to filter out events that aren't relevant to your task (e.g., via ProjectFileIndex.isInContent()).
VFS events are sent both before and after each change, and you can access the old contents of the file in the before event. Note that events caused by a refresh are sent after the changes have already occurred on disk. So when you process the beforeFileDeletion event, for example, the file has already been deleted from disk. However, it is still present in the VFS snapshot, and you can access its last contents using the VFS API.
Note that a refresh operation fires events only for changes in files that have been loaded in the snapshot. For example, if you accessed a VirtualFile for a directory but never loaded its contents using VirtualFile.getChildren(), you may not get fileCreated notifications when files are created in that directory.
If you loaded only a single file in a directory using VirtualFile.findChild(), you will get notifications for changes to that file, but you may not get created/deleted notifications for other files in the same directory.
Last modified: 12 January 2022
Files Virtual Files


Now it's August. The world is witnessing our military do the very thing Democrats declared impossible: Win the war against terrorists in Iraq – one block at a time, one day at a time. The nameless military experts Harry Reid cited are nowhere to be found. Democrat resolutions demanding our withdrawal – handing al Qaeda terrorists victory – are no longer hot news.
Instead, there are stories about the American public making the connection: that the terrorists we're fighting in Iraq are kinsmen to the terrorists who attacked us on 9/11. As attitudes shift, Democrats are shifting the goalposts – focusing on "political unity" in Iraq as the sole objective instead of military victory.
When the history of our time is written, there will be a political story of winners and losers. But the larger story will be the "age of disgrace," when Democrats used their surge of political power to demand defeat from our military and commander-in-chief – who waged a war that must be won, without Democrat help apparently.


text:
Q: Shading issue in opengl glsl The 3d obj(wavefront) model I'm loading and trying to apply some shading (through fixed pipeline+shaders combined for the purpose of simplicity) is being displayed wrong.
Now there are some problems i think i can spot.
The light issue: doesn't seem static. It seems to rotate as i rotate the object with transformations. I am using gluLookAt+gluPerspective to set my view matrix and i've read that if you apply the light in opengl before applying gluLookAt your lights remain static in theory. This doesn't seem to be the case here.
Issue 2 is the way the model is being shaded. It's sort of choppy instead of smooth and i'm not even sure why that ring effect appears.
I've loaded my mesh in ShaderMaker and applied my vertex+fragment shader also and everything draws perfect. It seems like i'm doing something wrong in my drawing routine.

My Vertex shader:
#version 120

varying vec3 N;
varying vec3 v;
void main(void)
{
   v = vec3(gl_ModelViewMatrix * gl_Vertex);
   N = normalize(gl_NormalMatrix * gl_Normal);
   gl_Position = gl_ModelViewProjectionMatrix * gl_Vertex;
}

My Fragment shader:
#version 120

varying vec3 N;
varying vec3 v;
#define MAX_LIGHTS 2
void main (void)
{
   vec4 finalColour;

        vec4 amb;
        amb = vec4(0.2,0.2,0.2,1.0);

        vec4 diff;
        diff = vec4(1.0,1.0,1.0,1.0);

       vec3 L = normalize(gl_LightSource[0].position.xyz - v);
       vec3 E = normalize(v);
       vec3 R = normalize(reflect(L,-N));
       //vec4 Iamb = gl_FrontLightProduct[i].ambient;
        vec4 Iamb = amb;

        //vec4 Idiff = gl_FrontLightProduct[i].diffuse * max(dot(N,L), 0.0);
       vec4 Idiff = diff * max(dot(N,L), 0.0);

        Idiff = clamp(Idiff, 0.0, 1.0);
       vec4 Ispec = gl_FrontLightProduct[0].specular
                    * pow(max(dot(R,E),0.0),0.0*gl_FrontMaterial.shininess);
       Ispec = clamp(Ispec, 0.0, 1.0);
       finalColour += Iamb + Idiff;

   gl_FragColor = gl_FrontLightModelProduct.sceneColor + finalColour;
}

EDIT :: Added my drawing routine.
 [[self openGLContext] makeCurrentContext];
    [sM useProgram];

    glClear(GL_COLOR_BUFFER_BIT | GL_DEPTH_BUFFER_BIT);
    glEnable(GL_DEPTH_TEST);
    glEnable(GL_LIGHTING);
    glClearColor(0.0f,0.0f,0.0f,1.0f);

    glMatrixMode(GL_PROJECTION);
    glLoadIdentity();

    float aspect = (float)1024 / (float)576;

    gluPerspective(15.0, aspect, 1.0, 15.0);

    glMatrixMode(GL_MODELVIEW);
    float lpos[4] = {0.0,2.0,0.0,1.0};
    glLoadIdentity();
    glLightfv(GL_LIGHT0, GL_POSITION, lpos);

    gluLookAt(0.0, 0.0, 10.0, 0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 1.0, 0.0);

    glTranslatef(0.0f, 0.0f, 0.0f);
    glScalef(0.5f, 0.5f, 0.5f);

    glRotatef(self.rotValue, 1.0f, 1.0f, 0.0f);

    glEnableClientState(GL_VERTEX_ARRAY);
    glEnableClientState(GL_NORMAL_ARRAY);
    NSLog(@"%i", self.W);

    if(self.W == NO)
    {
        glPolygonMode(GL_FRONT_AND_BACK, GL_FILL);
    }
    if (self.W == YES)
    {
        glPolygonMode(GL_FRONT_AND_BACK, GL_LINE);
    }
    glColor3f(1.0f,0.0f,0.0f);
    glBindBuffer(GL_ARRAY_BUFFER, vBo[0]);
    glVertexPointer(3, GL_FLOAT, 0, 0);

    glBindBuffer(GL_ARRAY_BUFFER, vBo[1]);
    glNormalPointer(GL_FLOAT, 0, 0);

    glBindBuffer(GL_ELEMENT_ARRAY_BUFFER, vBo[2]);
    glDrawElements(GL_TRIANGLES, object.indicesCount, GL_UNSIGNED_INT, 0);

    glBindBuffer(GL_ARRAY_BUFFER, 0);
    glDisableClientState(GL_NORMAL_ARRAY);
    glDisableClientState(GL_VERTEX_ARRAY);

    GLenum err = glGetError();
    if (err != GL_NO_ERROR)
        NSLog(@"glGetError(): %i", (int)err);

    [[self openGLContext] flushBuffer];

My shaders are actually borrowed from an online source. I have made my own but i wanted to make sure i use a solid one from someone experienced. I don't intend keeping them until i can fix this problem.

A: I think i've found the issue. Haven't implemented a solution yet but i am pretty sure the problem lies there. This question is also very relevant to my problem:
Understanding normals indices with Wavefront Obj
The problem was in the way i was handling my core data(from obj file). I was naive enough to believe passing them directly to OpenGL(through VBOs) as i parse them was going to work.
Here's a dose of humour to accompany my mistake.
I hope my link does not violate guideline rules.
Special thanks to Andreas for helping me trace the problem.
link
Update: A solution has been implemented and my models now render with correct shading.
I used the vertex and normal faces to rearrange the wavefront data(vertices+normals) into new vectors. I also switched from glDrawElements to glDrawArrays because glDrawElements does not support sending different indices for normal and uv vectors. Although this solution increases loading time and occupied space (since duplicated vertices are not removed from buffer) it is working and meets my needs.


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President Trump is down, but not out, by Michael Goodwin.
Battered, bruised and beaten, Donald Trump faces a grim reality. Halfway through his term, his presidency is at low tide.
The polls have cratered and his necessary retreat over using a shutdown to get wall funding had some erstwhile supporters spitting venom at him.
Still, Trump is not the first president to put himself behind the eight ball. Sooner or later, they all do.
The challenge now is a clear-eyed acceptance of reality and laser-like focus on the key question: What is my presidency for?
It's not a metaphysical quiz. The goal is to separate fact from fantasy and see what remains possible in light of the national mood and the 2020 calendar.
What Trump cares about most, and what he should devote the rest of his presidency to, is obvious: fixing the immigration crisis, with border security the essential first step.
Because there is nothing he can do to please the half of the country that hates him, he must do everything he can to win back those who were with him until the shutdown dragged on.
The longest in history, it cost him about 10 points in the polls. I believe most of those people can be won back if he stays the course on border security while expanding the focus beyond the wall and violent crime.


text:
Q: Search for a string inside a tuple, inside a list, inside a dictionary If I have a dictionary like this:
people = {'comedians': [('123456', 'Stephen Merchant'),
                        ('666999', 'Ricky Gervais'),
                        ('987654', 'Karl Pilkington')],
          'actors': [('366845', 'Bob DeNiro'),
                     ('475684', 'Christopher Walken')]
          }

How can I search if the string '123456' exists in people['comedians']?
I know I can access the element directly with people['comedians'][0][0], but I can't see how I can search if it exists when given multiple tuples in a list.
I don't need to return the name associated with the number, just that it exists.

A: You can use any with a generator:
if any(tup[0] == '123456' for tup in people['comedians']):
    print('found 123456')