text:
Protests multiply in Afghanistan
We saw that hundreds of people in Ghazni hit the streets in protest on Thursday (Jan 20) after an overnight raid killed several people, alleged by the protesters to be innocent civilians. The protests continued on Friday, when Pajhwok Afghan News reported that "hundreds" of protesters forces the closure of streets and businesses. Shopkeeper Hamidullah told the reporter:
"The victims had links neither with Taliban fighters nor with other anti-government group. Abdullah, a security guard of a mobile tower, was killed along with two sons in the air raid." Driver Fazal Karim was the fourth civilian victim, he said. (link) [N.B.: The shopkeeper is translated as referring to an air raid, when it was a ground forces raid.]
The protesters returned the next day, according to PressTV which reported the mobilization of "500 angry demonstrators". More interestingly, however, PressTV also reports that Afghan workers at Bagram Air Base are on strike against their US employers:
Afghan workers protest at Bagram base
JANUARY 24 - Afghan workers at Bagram Air Base have staged a protest against maltreatment by the US military and laser health hazards at the camp, says a report.
Employees at the US military airport and housing complex in Bagram, 11 kilometers southeast of Charikar in the Parwan province of Afghanistan, gathered in front of the camp to show opposition "to US inappropriate treatment of the workers," a Press TV correspondent reported on Saturday.
Demonstrators said they have to pass through a "scanning device equipped with laser beans" which puts the employees' health in danger.
"We have to stand in queue for many hours to pass the security check post one by one," explained one of the protestors...
Thousands of Afghans work in the camp every day. They warned of quitting in the event the problem is not resolved... (link)
Posted by Dave Markland at 1:45 PM 2 comments
More killings by ground forces reveal emerging tactic
Another protest following more alleged civilian killings, this time in Ghazni province northeast of Kandahar. What is especially noteworthy about this incident is that ground forces are once again the perpetrators. This is in fact another in a series of incidents involving ground troops, whereas only a few months ago, civilian casualties by foreign forces were nearly all caused by airstrikes. So it appears that new more aggressive (or at least more numerous) ground force operations have become the principle source of civilian casualties by foreign forces.
Afghans protest over alleged civilian deaths
GHAZNI, Jan 21 (AFP) - Angry Afghan villagers took to the streets on Thursday claiming that civilians were killed in a raid by Afghan and NATO troops but the international force said the dead were insurgents.
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said it killed four insurgents including a 15-year-old boy in an operation in the Qarabagh district of Ghazni province on Wednesday night...
But about 50 furious villagers brought five coffins to the provincial capital Ghazni city on Thursday, claiming that three of the dead were civilians, including two children below the age of seven, an AFP reporter saw.
"Doctors told me that there were two children among the bodies brought to hospital," said Mohammad Ismail Ibrahimzai, head of the provincial hospital where the bodies were initially taken... (link)
The day following the alleged killing of the three civilians, NATO troops in Helmand (most likely US Marines) attended to three children wounded in crossfire.
A Taliban charm offensive?
The New York Times' Alissa Rubin reports that some rural Afghans are seeing an improvement in the behaviour of Taliban insurgents. She also twice notes the disdain which Afghans exhibit for NATO troops, thus echoing Al Jazeera's reporter last week who said that locals "don't hide their hatred" of the foreign soldiers.
Taliban Make Over Their Image to Win Allies
By Alissa J. Rubin
KABUL, Jan 21 (NYT) - The Taliban have embarked on a sophisticated information war, using modern media tools as well as some old-fashioned ones, to soften their image and win favor with local Afghans...
Now, as the Taliban deepen their presence in more of Afghanistan, they are in greater need of popular support and are recasting themselves increasingly as a local liberation movement, independent of Al Qaeda, capitalizing on the mounting frustration of Afghans with their own government and the presence of foreign troops. The effect has been to make them a more potent insurgency, some NATO officials said.
Afghan villagers and some NATO officials added that [the Taliban code of conduct issued last year] had begun to change the way some midlevel Taliban commanders and their followers behave on the ground. A couple of the most brutal commanders have even been removed by Mullah Omar...
But the most important factor in their growing reach is the ineffectiveness of the central government and Afghans' resentment of foreign troops.
Military intelligence analysts now estimate that there are 25,000 to 30,000 committed Taliban fighters and perhaps as many as 500,000 others who would fight either for pay or if they felt attacked by the Western coalition...
Interviews with tribal elders in areas where the Taliban are active suggest a complex picture. Several interviewed in rural Kandahar Province praised the Taliban's new, less threatening approach, but said that did not translate into enthusiasm for the Taliban. At the same time, there is not much liking for either the Afghan government or NATO troops.
"There is a tremendous change in the Taliban's behavior," said Haji-Khan Muhammad Khan, a tribal elder from Shawalikot, a rural district of Kandahar Province
"They don't behead people or detain those they suspect of spying without an investigation. But sometimes they still make mistakes, people still fear them, but now generally they behave well with people. They had to change because the leadership of the Taliban did not want to lose the support of the grass roots." (link)
Rubin's figure of a half million almost-insurgents is an estimate I have not seen before. That puts a number value on the potential hornet's nest which the American-led war could be stepping into with their plans to get close to the population and make Afghans like the occupation.
Afghans 'do not hide their hatred' of Canadian troops
In this BBC translation of a January 15 broadcast of Al-Jazeera Arabic, Kabul correspondent Waliyullah Shahin reports on a Canadian Forces operation in the Panjwai district:
(Shahin:) These forces realize that danger is looming everywhere. They proceed with extreme caution in the Taleban movement's stronghold, which lies a few kilometers away from the city of Kandahar. They are trying to win the hearts and minds of the people of the Panjwai District, which was the scene of large-scale operations.
(Captain Peter, Canadian contingent:) We are visiting the hospital, schools, and the police station in Panjwai's market to ascertain what the people in the area need.
(Shahin:) The residents of the area do not hide their hatred of these forces. They accuse these forces of violating their privacy and depriving them of the basic needs for a secure rural life. Animosity continues to grip the relationship between these forces and the residents of the area.
(Unidentified Afghan, speaking in a local dialect:) The foreign forces bombard innocent civilians, but not the Taleban. We suffer from the Americans and the Afghan government; we experience a great deal of harassment... (link)
Meanwhile, violence in American-held Garmsir district continues as one civilian is killed by what appears to be US Marines (NATO won't say the nationality of the troops responsible):
NATO Troops Shoot Afghan In Area That Saw Unrest
KABUL, Jan 17 (Reuters) - NATO-led troops shot dead an Afghan civilian whose vehicle approached a convoy today in an area that has seen violent civil unrest over the past week in Afghanistan, the alliance said.
It was at least the third time in a week that either NATO or Afghan troops had shot civilians in Helmand Province's Garmsir district, raising the political temperature in an area mostly seized by U.S. Marines from the Taliban last year.
The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said troops had opened fire after a large vehicle with no headlights approached a convoy at high speed early today... (link)
In a similar incident, German troops killed a civilian in the north:
German troops kill civilian - Afghan official
KUNDUZ, Jan 18 (Reuters) - German troops with a NATO-led contingent killed an Afghan civilian and wounded a second person on Sunday at a roadside checkpoint in northern Kunduz province, a senior police official said...
"Despite hand signals and warning shots, the car didn't stop and instead sped towards the checkpoint. Given the escalation, soldiers then opened fire with small arms," the German Federal Armed Forces said in a statement... (link)
With all this carnage, it is perhaps not surprising that a large Ghilzai Pashtun tribe, the Kharoti tribe, is calling for an end to nighttime raids by foreign forces:
Elders seek end to house searches
By Rahmatullah Afghan
KABUL, Jan 15 (Pajhwok) - Elders from the Kharoti tribe have unanimously asked foreign troops to stop unwarranted night operations in their areas.
The demand came at a meeting attended by 60 elders and representatives of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kabul.
Mullah Sayed Yaqub, representative from the southern zone and resident of the Sra Roza district of Paktika province, said: "We are fed up with the operations. They enter our houses at night and kill us."
He said the international troops should discuss with locals or others if they had any problem in an area... (link)
The Kharoti tribe since 2001 have it seems been trying to maneuver between the Taliban and the foreign occupation forces (see here and here). While the tribe's traditional lands are further north in Paktia and near Kabul, a sizable number of Kharoti settlers can be found in the Nad-i Ali district of Helmand, where US Marines have been operating for several months now. Those Kharotis settled in the district decades ago to work the new farmland created by a costly irrigation project built by an American engineering firm which soon proved a disaster as salination stunted productivity. It is likely, however, that those settlers are largely de-tribalized, as are other Kharoti settler communities in the north of the country. The warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who is loosely allied with the Taliban, comes from such a Kharoti settler community in Kunduz province.
Are rosy opinion polls bogus?
A new poll conducted by D3 systems for the BBC and ABC and a German TV station has hit the headlines worldwide. The Globe and Mail says the poll shows "that Afghans are more confident about their future, prefer the administration President Hamid Karzai over the Taliban, and support the presence of American and NATO troops".
However, the poll immediately met with skepticism by knowledgeable and experienced observers like the respected expert on Post-Taliban Afghanistan Daniel Korski as well as journalist Jason Burke. They cited the implausibility of pollsters being able to travel to a high enough percentage of districts to make the sample a valid one. But the criticism goes far beyond that.
The Huffington Post has more:
Afghanistan is a highly patriarchal society, meaning that getting a woman's true opinion is extremely hard. [Prakhar Sharma of the Karzai family-connected Centre for Conflict and Peace Studies in Kabul] said that his research teams have never been able to get even close to the 50-50 male/female split that the ABC survey claims...
Those with experience in Afghanistan were skeptical that the surveyors actually went where they said they did. "If you look at it, the polling was conducted in built-up areas, in urban areas where we have our bases and where the Afghan government has a presence, primarily off the major highways," said [recently-resigned US foreign service official Matthew] Hoh. "So through the South and West of the country, primarily it was done right along Highway 1 where the government has control and where we have control. Off those areas, we don't have control." ...
Hoh said he simply doesn't buy it, both because the areas are impenetrable and because the answers make no sense. "I just don't really believe that, because what I saw in both the East and the South of the country...where all the fighting's really going on, this doesn't jive with, it doesn't agree with what you get when you go out and meet with local villagers. When you go out to these valleys and meet with folks, it doesn't square that they see a central government as a force for good," said Hoh...
Gopal and the others said that Afghan respondents try to figure out what the interviewer wants. "They almost always tell the surveyor what he wants to hear...
"I've seen this first hand when I accompanied surveyors in the field a couple of years ago." ...
Sharma said he has worked directly with the D3 subsidiary and found them to be the best qualified survey contractor among an unimpressive field. But even with that outfit they found "data falsified for insecure provinces (90 respondents in Ghazni had identical responses to all governance related questions, for instance)," Sharma wrote in an e-mail...
"The way the surveys work is by recruiting, say, 34 people for the 34 provinces," [Gopal] writes. "Each of these people are then tasked with finding participants for the survey in their province. In rural Afghanistan, with geographical, logistical and security concerns, these people can't very well go door to door. Moreover, they can't randomly select phone numbers here ... Therefore the surveyors usually find participants by polling their friends and family. This means that you don't have a random sample, and the results of the survey depend entirely on the political outlook of [the] person in charge. Since the surveyors are often educated people who live in urban areas and have ties to the government (in most provincial urban centers, almost every educated person--and there's not many--have family members working for the government, because that's the only job available to them.), there's a heavy pro-government and pro-coalition bias in the surveys." (link)
But easily the most damning criticism of the D3/ACSOR polling comes from Antonio Giustozzi, a British academic who is the recognized authority on the post-2001 Taliban. He was interviewed by British writer Ian Sinclair:
I ask him about the 2009 BBC/ABC News opinion poll conducted in Afghanistan which put support for the Taliban at around 9 per cent and support for the government at 65 per cent.
"The 9 per cent is an underestimate," he replies. Having studied the methodology of previous BBC/ABC polls, Giustozzi explains it is very unlikely that the polling staff travelled to the rural areas in the south - "where the Taliban are" - instead focusing on the cities and provincial centres.
"The sampling is very, very biased ... there are very few unemployed people, whereas even the government says unemployment is 40 per cent.
"In the poll 5 per cent were police and army, whereas in Afghanistan the actual percentage of the population in the army and police is 0.2 per cent. Fourteen per cent were managers and directors. There were no mullahs."
If the sampling was balanced, he estimates the Taliban would get around 15 per cent support nationwide and 30-40 per cent support in the south.
Interestingly, Giustozzi mentions that he has seen polls conducted by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) which use different methodologies and get very different results - much higher support for the Taliban and much lower support for the government.
"In ISAF polls in early 2009 support for (Afghan President) Karzai was 4 per cent," he says. "They don't release them, of course - because they show a completely different picture." (link)
US Marines shoot at stick wielding protester
In the previous blog post, we saw that on January 12, Afghan and (allegedly) US troops shot and killed eight protesters in Garmsir, a town on the edge of the desert in Helmand province. The following day, January 13, saw another protest which met with troops' bullets, but this time the Americans' involvement is explicit:
NATO, Afghan troops fire on Afghan crowd wounding five
KABUL, Jan 15 (Reuters) - At least five Afghan civilians were wounded when a combined force of Afghan troops and U.S. Marines opened fire on a crowd at the gate to a military base in Helmand, Afghanistan's most volatile province, NATO said on Friday.
The incident, which took place on Wednesday but was not reported until Friday, was the second demonstration to turn violent in two days in Helmand's Garmsir district, suggesting mounting civil unrest in a part of the country where U.S. Marines under NATO command made major advances last year.
"ANA and ISAF forces warned a crowd of between 200 and 400 assembled civilians to keep its distance from the outpost," a NATO statement said...
"A number of civilians in the crowd disregarded instructions, resulting in forces firing warning shots. Deliberative escalation of force procedures were followed, but one individual continued to ignore instructions, striking members of the combined force with a stick," the statement said.
Lieutenant-Colonel Todd Breasseale said both Afghan troops and the U.S. Marines subsequently fired at the crowd...
The incident came a day after another violent demonstration in Garmsir...
Dawood Ahmadi, spokesman for Helmand governor Gulab Mangal, said Wednesday's demonstration had taken place outside a base where U.S. and Afghan officials were discussing the unrest from the day before.
He said Taliban infiltrators in Wednesday's crowd fired at the U.S. and Afghan troops, prompting the Afghans to return fire. The NATO statement made no mention of shots fired from the crowd... (link)
Note that the governor's office claimed the troops had been fired on, while NATO said no such thing. This is a strange discrepancy considering the two-day delay in relasing any news about this. And it bears asking, considering this incident was covered up for two days, have there been similar incidents which have never been reported?
Locals say US troops shot protesters
Residents of Garmsir in Helmand province are accusing American troops of killing anti-US demonstrators at a protest attended by several thousand. The Americans claim their forces were nearby, but not on scene, as security forces forces clashed with rowdy demonstrators, killing eight civilians and three members of the security forces.
While US military officials have denied the charges, the size of the protest alone is of particular note. Whether the thousands of protesters who came were organized by non-insurgents or whether the Taliban organized them or even coerced them to attend, it is still a significant number of demonstrators.
Deadly Protest in Afghanistan Highlights Tensions
By Dexter Filkins - New York Times
KABUL, Jan 12 - At least eight Afghan civilians were killed and a dozen wounded Tuesday during a street protest in a volatile town along the Helmand River, after a raid on an Afghan home Sunday by American and Afghan forces. The raid was seized on by Taliban provocateurs who organized the protesters and pushed them toward violence, local officials said...
Local officials said the protest, which involved several thousand local Afghans, was organized by the Taliban's "shadow" governor for Garmsir, Mullah Mohammed Naim...
No eyewitnesses to the disputed raid could be located; it took place Sunday night in the nearby village of Darwashan. American officers in Kabul denied that their soldiers had abused any Afghan women or desecrated a Koran...
The protesters in Garmsir began shouting, "Death to America" and "Death to [local police chief] Kamal Khan," and overturned several cars. They set a school on fire. Then they stormed the local office of the National Security Directorate, the Afghan domestic intelligence service.
The security directorate is sometimes blamed for providing faulty intelligence to the Americans, who then detain the wrong people. As the crowd moved in, agents opened fire, Mr. Khan said.
In addition to the eight protesters killed and 13 wounded, an Afghan intelligence agent and two police were killed.
As the chaos unfolded, American officials said, a Taliban sniper began firing into the nearby American base, known as Forward Operating Base Delhi, a few hundred yards away. American officers said they killed the sniper, but no one else. In a statement, the Americans denied that they had fired on any protesters...
"The American are blaspheming the holy Koran and violating and disrespecting our culture," said Jan Gul, a farmer whose son was killed in the protest. "We cannot tolerate such behavior. We will defend our religion."
Indeed, some Afghans maintained that the American forces were present with the Afghan agents and fired on the crowd... (link)
Reuters reporter Abdul Malek, reporting from Helmand, adds support to the accusations that American troops did in fact take part:
Haji Jan Gul, who described himself as one of the demonstrators, said that his son had been killed in the melee. The foreign forces opened fire when protesters threw stones at them, he said.
"The foreigners shot many people in the streets, some 10 people died and others were wounded," he said... (link)
Also the Financial Times:
Ahmad Khan, a farmer who told the Financial Times by telephone that he was wounded in the demonstration, accused local and foreign forces of opening fire. "We wanted to condemn those foreigners who set fire to the Holy Koran and killed civilians," he said. "The foreigners and the Afghans fired at us." (link)
Losing a disastrous war
A string of developments in the past couple of weeks is revealing that the war in Afghanistan is going rather badly. In late December, NBC did a story on a leaked report prepared for CENTCOM commander David Petraeus which looked at the Afghan National Army and found it in a dismal state. I haven't found a copy yet, but the NBC reporters quoted from it:
'Nepotism, corruption, and absenteeism among ANA leaders makes success impossible. Change must come quickly.' Another line: 'If Afghan political leaders do not place competent people in charge, no amount of coalition support will suffice in the long term.' (link)
Meanwhile, the top American intelligence officer in Afghanistan, Maj-Gen Michael Flynn, has delivered a bombshell assessment of the war's progress in beating down the Taliban:
'Afghan Insurgency Can Sustain Itself Indefinitely,' Top U.S. Intel Chief Says
By Noah Shachtman - Wired.com
JANUARY 8 - The Taliban not only has the "momentum" after the most successful year in its campaign against the United States and the Kabul government. "The Afghan insurgency can sustain itself indefinitely," according to a briefing from Major General Michael Flynn, the top U.S. intelligence officer in the country. "The Taliban retains [the] required partnerships to sustain support, fuel legitimacy and bolster capacity."
And if that isn't enough, Flynn also warns that "time is running out" for the American-lead International Security Assistance Force. "Regional instability is rapidly increasing and getting worse," the report says...
Flynn's December 23rd presentation on the "State of the Insurgency : Trends, Intentions and Objectives" may be the gloomiest public assessment of the war yet. The "loosely organized" Taliban is "growing more cohesive" and "increasingly effective." The insurgents now have their own "governors" installed in 33 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces. And the "strength and ability of [that] shadow governance increasing," according to the presentation...
The presentation also cast doubt on some of the war's stated central aims. The Obama administration has repeatedly said that additional troops are necessary to prevent a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan — which would then allow Al Qaeda to re-establish its safe haven there. According to interviews with detainees, however, the insurgents "view Al Qaeda as a handicap – a view that is increasingly prevalent." The Taliban feel they have to "manage [the] relationship with AQ to avoid alienating Afghan population, but encourage support from [the] global jihad network." ... (link)
And here's a rather shocking story that had no legs at all. I couldn't find a single reference to this development in the English world press. The UN's development news agency IRIN has the story:
More IDPs than previously thought - government
KABUL, Jan 4 (IRIN) - The number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Afghanistan is significantly higher than estimated by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the government has said.
New Ministry of Refugees and Returnees (MoRR) figures from all 34 provinces indicate that 82,778 households (413,890 individuals) are currently internally displaced...
UNHCR estimates of 275,000 people displaced within Afghanistan are based on the findings of a National IDP Task Force which included UN agencies, government bodies and NGOs.
Many IDPs belong to caseloads dating back to 1998-2002: These IDPs are mainly in camps and settlements in the south and west.
Over one million people were reportedly internally displaced in 2002... (link)
By giving the figure of 1 million IDPs in 2002, the article gives the impression that the number of IDPs has declined since then, albeit not as dramatically as previously thought if the latest report is accurate. In fact, the number of IDPs appears to have dropped quite dramatically after 2002 and began rising a couple of years ago. In November 2007 there were 129,000 UNHCR-registered IDPs, though The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre reckoned the true number to be closer to 300,000. A year ago the UNHCR was estimating there were 235,000 IDPs in total, somewhat lower than their current estimate of 275,000.
Finally, a deeply saddening testament to the evils of war:
Afghan women turning to suicide in greater numbers: report
By Murray Brewster
OTTAWA, Jan 6 (CP) - More Afghan women are choosing suicide to escape the violence and brutality of their daily lives, says a new human-rights report prepared by Canada's Foreign Affairs Department.
The 2008 annual assessment paints a grim picture of a country where violence against women and girls is common...
"Self-immolation is being used by increasing numbers of Afghan women to escape their dire circumstances, and women constitute the majority of Afghan suicides," said the report, completed in November 2009.
The document was obtained by The Canadian Press under the Access to Information Act.
The director of a burn unit at a hospital in the relatively peaceful province of Herat reported that in 2008 more than 80 women tried to kill themselves by setting themselves on fire, many of them in their early 20s... (link)
Note that the report was apparently not released publicly.
Posted by Dave Markland at 12:35 AM 1 comments
5000 Afghans shout 'Death to Obama'
Recently, protests over the alleged US special forces massacre of eight teenagers were held in Kabul and Jalalabad, where hundreds of students rallied, as well as in Asadabad, the capitol of Kunar province where the killings occurred. That protest was attended by 1,500 according to media reports.
But yesterday in Jalalabad, a new protest brought 5,000 people to the streets chanting slogans against the US over the deaths of several civilians in a bomb blast near that city. But the unusual (and vitally important) thing about the protest is that it was an insurgent bombing, not American planes or troops, which took that toll.
In this context, the message of the protest is clear: Afghans blame the occupation for all the violence in that country, even those acts perpetrated by those who resist the foreigners. While this is not an unusual phenomenon, it is one lost on many who write on the war in Afghanistan. Just recently I mentioned the phenomenon to a Canadian military blogger in response to his comment, but "milnews.ca" appeared neither to know nor care. This is certainly not unusual; many commentators, in response to justified outrage about civilians killed by foreign forces, rebut with a breathless catalog of insurgent crimes. This latest protest shows how morally shallow such performances are.
In any case, it is interesting that those Afghans in the streets of Jalalabad are in a way making concrete the Nuremburg principle that aggression is the "supreme international crime [which] contains within itself all the accumulated evil of the whole."
New civilian deaths roil Afghans
Thousands chant 'Death to America' to protest latest killing of children
KABUL, Jan 7 (AP) - Thousands of Afghans shouting "Death to America" protested the killings of children Thursday, the latest in a string of controversial cases in which international forces have been blamed for civilian deaths...
On Wednesday, an explosion tore through a group of children gathered around foreign soldiers visiting a U.S.-funded road project in Nangarhar province, east of the capital of Kabul. Afghan officials said four children were killed. NATO said two died.
Minutes after the blast, local residents were accusing American forces of throwing a grenade into the crowd — even though several international troops were among the wounded. The Afghan Interior Ministry later released a statement saying the explosion occurred when a passing police vehicle hit a mine.
Still, an estimated 5,000 protesters demonstrated the deaths Thursday along a road between Kabul and Jalalabad in Nangarhar. They waved a banner condemning the attack, set fire to an effigy of President Barack Obama and chanted "Long live Islam!" and "Death to Obama!"
"We are shouting 'Death to America' and 'to the Afghan government,'" Sardar Wali, a university student at the demonstration. "It is the responsibility of the Afghan government to find and hand over the people who are responsible for this attack." ... (link)
Canadian media sits on juicy murder story
Here's a rather revealing item which got almost no mention in the Canadian press. A cousin of Hamid Karzai kills another cousin of Hamid Karzai in an honour killing. It appears that the killer, Hashmat Karzai, had the support of Hamid and his brothers, one of whom, Ahmed Wali Karzai, is the recognized head of the Karzai clan and the de facto governor of Kandahar - and drug kingpin and CIA informant. Police investigation seems to be blocked, likely due to Wali's influence.
This remarkable story got mentioned on page 16 of the Montreal Gazette (Dec 24/09) and nowhere else in the Canadian press.
Killing Bares Karzai Clan Feud, And Doubts on Afghan Justice
James Risen - The New York Times
WASHINGTON, Dec 20 - On Oct. 16, four sport utility vehicles barreled into Karz, Afghanistan, the hometown of the country's president, Hamid Karzai, and pulled up to the home of one of his cousins, Yar Mohammad Karzai.
Teams of armed guards blocked the street and herded passers-by into a nearby mosque while seizing their cellphones, then removed the front door of the house, according to Karzai family members and several people from the mosque. A man in traditional white Afghan robes, accompanied by two security guards, walked inside and found two of Yar Mohammad Karzai's children, 18-year-old Waheed and his 12-year-old sister, Sona, doing their schoolwork in their bedroom.
The girl later said that she remembered the robed man raising a pistol and shooting Waheed three times as she shouted: ''Don't kill my brother! Don't kill my brother!''
As the intruders fled, firing their weapons, a cousin, Zalal Karzai, 25, came running from elsewhere in the house and saw Waheed stagger from the bedroom. ''What happened to you?'' Zalal Karzai recalled asking.
'' 'Hashmat shot me!' '' he said the youth screamed back.
Waheed Karzai, who relatives say provided the same account to other family members before dying two days later at an American military hospital in Kandahar, was referring to Hashmat Karzai, 40, a first cousin of the president and the owner of a private security company that has close ties to the Afghan government and millions of dollars in contracts with the United States military...
Some relatives said they believed that the death was vengeance for an ''honor killing'' of Hashmat Karzai's father nearly 30 years ago by Yar Mohammad Karzai...
While some family members accuse the Karzai government of stonewalling, they do not claim that the president played an active role in blocking an investigation. Instead, they blame several of his brothers, including Ahmed Wali Karzai, the political boss of Kandahar...
Noor Karzai, 40, a cousin who lives in Maryland, expressed similar disappointment. ''They are protecting Hashmat,'' he said. ''He is sitting in Kabul getting money from the U.S. government. No one will touch him. We are sending billions of dollars of ...
The village of Karz is in Kandahar Province, about three miles outside the city of Kandahar, where Ahmed Wali Karzai, one of the president's brothers, wields enormous political power. But after Waheed's killing, government officials in the Kandahar area were strangely unhelpful...
Meanwhile, at least three of President Karzai's brothers -- Ahmed Wali, Mahmoud and Qayum -- have been urging family members to allow relatives to deal with the killing privately without bringing in the police, said Noor and Mohammad Karzai, the brothers from Maryland... (link)
A few days after the NYT story, which caused quite a stir in Afghanistan, the Associated Press related that President Karzai had finally ordered an investigation:
A spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Zemeri Bashary, said Karzai ordered the ministry to begin investigating the killing Sunday, the same day the newspaper report was published.
He said counterterrorism police and criminal investigators were assisting local officials, who began looking into the killing earlier.
Yar Mohammad Karzai said he was frustrated the president took so long to acknowledge the slaying. "He did not even give me a condolence call,'' he said... (link)
So President Karzai apparently made no move to order a murder investigation early on and didn't even call to condole his cousin whose son was murdered. It thus seems the alleged murderer's family is closer to Hamid and his brothers than is the victim's family.
But clearly this debacle is not simply a matter of the security forces wisely staying out of difficult family feuds. Forty-year-old Hashmat Karzai, the alleged killer, heads a major security firm contracted to the US military while his younger brother Hekmat, 36, founded the Centre for Conflict and Peace Studies and is an advisor to his cousin Hamid Karzai. (It was their father, Khalil Karzai, who was killed in the early 80's by the father of the recently dead teen.)
It seems likely that many Afghans will see this latest slaying not as justice being served, but as another wealthy and powerful man using the immunity of his position to victimize others. Which is surely the last thing that Afghanistan needs right now. It also seems like something people in Canada might want to know about, given our important role in propping up the government there. But boosters for the war - and the media have more than their fair share of those - find such revelations a little bit awkward. Best to leave it out.
Posted by Dave Markland at 12:00 PM 1 comments
Scholars agree: Afghan war is illegal
Marjorie Cohn, former head of the National Lawyers' Guild, was a highly visible and formidable critic of the Bush administration. Her book Cowboy Republic is the best source I know on the various crimes of that era. Below, Cohn admirably continues her efforts, turning her attention to Obama's war.
Cohn is not the only jurist to examine the legal status of the Afghan war in recent years. Canadian law professor Michael Mandel has written substantially on the matter as have Myra Williamson and highly respected scholar Alex Conte, who have each produced a book on the subject. Interestingly, all of them have found that the war in Afghanistan began illegally and those who look past the initial invasion (all but Williamson) find that the war continues to be illegal.
A Grave Breach of the Geneva Conventions
Why the Af/Pak War is Illegal
By Marjorie Cohn
... The UN Charter provides that all member states must settle their international disputes by peaceful means, and no nation can use military force except in self-defense or when authorized by the Security Council. After the 9/11 attacks, the council passed two resolutions, neither of which authorized the use of military force in Afghanistan.
"Operation Enduring Freedom" was not legitimate self-defense under the charter because the 9/11 attacks were crimes against humanity, not "armed attacks" by another country. Afghanistan did not attack the United States. In fact, 15 of the 19 hijackers hailed from Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, there was not an imminent threat of an armed attack on the United States after 9/11, or President Bush would not have waited three weeks before initiating his October 2001 bombing campaign. The necessity for self-defense must be "instant, overwhelming, leaving no choice of means, and no moment for deliberation." ...
Bush's justification for attacking Afghanistan was that it was harboring Osama bin Laden and training terrorists, even though bin Laden did not claim responsibility for the 9/11 attacks until 2004. After Bush demanded that the Taliban turn over bin Laden to the United States, the Taliban's ambassador to Pakistan said his government wanted proof that bin Laden was involved in the 9/11 attacks before deciding whether to extradite him, according to the Washington Post. That proof was not forthcoming, the Taliban did not deliver bin Laden, and Bush began bombing Afghanistan.
Bush's rationale for attacking Afghanistan was spurious. Iranians could have made the same argument to attack the United States after they overthrew the vicious Shah Reza Pahlavi in 1979 and the U.S. gave him safe haven. If the new Iranian government had demanded that the U.S. turn over the Shah and we refused, would it have been lawful for Iran to invade the United States? Of course not.
When he announced his troop "surge" in Afghanistan, Obama invoked the 9/11 attacks. By continuing and escalating Bush's war in Afghanistan, Obama, too, is violating the UN Charter. In his speech accepting the Nobel Peace Prize, Obama declared that he has the "right" to wage wars "unilaterally." The unilateral use of military force, however, is illegal unless undertaken in self-defense...
The use of these drones in Pakistan violates both the UN Charter and the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit willful killing. Targeted or political assassinations—sometimes called extrajudicial executions—are carried out by order of, or with the acquiescence of, a government, outside any judicial framework. As a 1998 report from the UN Special Rapporteur noted, "extrajudicial executions can never be justified under any circumstances, not even in time of war." Willful killing is a grave breach ... (link)
The Afghan peace movement
As we saw in the previous blog entry, in December there were three disastrous nighttime raids carried out by (so it seems) US special forces and/or CIA in Afghanistan. Two of them involved ground troops allegedly killing civilians at close range, while the third involved a deadly airstrike called in by special forces. In total the incidents killed some 24 civilians.
The reaction among Afghans appears to be quite strong. In the wake of the first incident, the Dec 7/8 attack in Laghman province which killed 12 civilians, Afghan parliamentarians reacted bitterly, as reported on Afghanistan's Tolo TV:
(Mawlawi Sayed Rahman, MP representing Laghman Province:) This is an aggression. This is an advanced way of occupying a country where a number of people are being killed or detained under several pretexts. In this way, they (foreigners) are insulting the people...
(Yunos Qanuni, lower house Speaker:) Basic principles of this country's policies for the coming five years should be presented (to the lower house). This should include debate about country's new policies about the presence of foreign forces in Afghanistan. [BBC Foreign Service translation]
Note that the Laghman MP calls the western presence in his country an occupation and that Yunos Qanuni, a very important Afghan politician, calls into question the legitimacy of that occupation.
In the second incident, a Dec 27/28 nighttime operation by US special forces or CIA resulted in at least eight civilians killed by ground forces. Agence France-Presse reports that President Karzai "strongly condemned" the Kunar killings, which is I believe the strongest language he has ever used in incidents of this kind. There are, however, reports that Afghan army soldiers were involved in the Kunar incident, so Karzai's anger may be a rouse to deflect attention from his responsibility.
The Kunar incident sparked at least three major protests in Afghanistan. On Dec 30, protests attracting hundreds of demonstrators were held in Kabul and Jalalabad, the major eastern Afghan city and gateway to Pakistan and on Dec 31 some 1,500 protesters hit the streets of Asadabad, capital of Kunar province.
Afghans burn Obama effigy over civilian deaths
JALALABAD, Dec 30 (AFP) - Protesters took to the streets in Afghanistan on Wednesday, burning an effigy of the US president and shouting "death to Obama" to slam civilian deaths during Western military operations.
Hundreds of university students blocked main roads in Jalalabad, capital of eastern Nangarhar province, to protest the alleged deaths of 10 civilians, mostly school children, in a Western military operation on Saturday.
"The government must prevent such unilateral operations otherwise we will take guns instead of pens and fight against them (foreign forces)," students from the University of Nangarhar's education faculty said in a statement.
Marching through the main street of Jalalabad, the students chanted "death to Obama" and "death to foreign forces", witnesses said.
The protesters torched a US flag and an effigy of US President Barack Obama in a public square in central Jalalabad, before dispersing.
"Our demonstration is against those foreigners who have come to our country," Safiullah Aminzai, a student organiser, told AFP...
A similar protest was planned in Kabul against the "killing of civilians, especially the recent killing of students in Kunar by foreign forces," said organisers from the youth wing of Jamiat Eslah, or the Afghan Society for Social Reform and Development.
"The demonstration is to show our hatred, anger and sorrow about the current situation," said Sayed Khalid Rashid.
"Our main request is that the American and NATO forces must leave the country and Afghan people must have political autonomy," he said, adding that he expected hundreds of people to turn out for the march through western Kabul... (link)
The organisers of the Dec 30 Kabul protest, Jamiat Eslah's youth section, issued this statement:
1. On behalf of the young generation of our country, we strongly condemn the recent killing of our innocent compatriots by US and NATO troops in the provinces of Kunar, Laghman, Baghlan and everywhere else. We condemn such operations by whatever name carried out, either it is called peacekeeping or enduring freedom, and want an end to cruelly massacring of our people.
2. We urge the Afghan government and law-enforcement agencies to seriously chase these killings and bring to justice the perpetrators.
3. The Afghan youth urge the United Nations, human rights watchdogs and the international community not to stay indifferent towards killing and massacre of civilian Afghans anymore. They must stop brutal killing of innocent Afghans via legal and legitimate ways.
4. The Afghan people believe that US and NATO must think about ending their war policies in Afghanistan, instead of sending out more troops to kill more innocent Afghans.
5. We urge the world community not to impose its mandate on the Afghan people. A nation that has lived together throughout the history can decide its own fate and can coexist as a sovereign nation with no need to foreign intervention.
6. We ask all Afghans to put away their factional and personal interests and work for higher national interests to make an independent, free and prosperous Afghanistan.
The Afghan youth will not allow foreign hands to exploit our disunity for carrying out their imperialistic agendas and destroy our country.
Long live Afghanistan (link)
Note that the Kabul protest statement does not explicitly call for all foreign troops to be pulled out (only that occupying countries "must think about ending their war policies"), though the spokesperson at the protest asserts that their "main request is that the American and NATO forces must leave the country."
On the other hand the Jalalabad students' rhetoric is notable for its bravado, as their statement says that if there is no change, students will take up arms.
One obvious question which arises is who is Jamiat Eslah's youth section, exactly? Information is scant but the parent organization Jamiat Eslah (Afghan Society for Social Reform and Development) appears to be a respected NGO, affiliated with ACBAR and the UN and recipient of international foundation money. Browsing through this flickr photo essay of the Kabul protest reveals a distinct blue headband motif. Can this be seen as a distinctly secular gesture? An echo of the so-called colour revolutions or Iran's green-adorned protesters, perhaps?
The current batch of peaceniks are not a lone voice in Afghanistan, as readers of this blog are no doubt aware. The recently well-publicized Malalai Joya has been calling for foreign troops to withdraw for some time now. And besides Joya and her supporters, the peace camp also includes RAWA and their supporters as well as the National Peace Jirga.
The current protests seem to be having no small effect, spurring the Karzai administration to strike out against the occupying powers over the explosive issue of civilian casualties:
Kabul demands foreign 'killers' handed over
by Sardar Ahmad Sardar Ahmad
KABUL, Dec 31 (AFP) – The Afghan government demanded Thursday to take into its custody foreigners wanted over the alleged killing of 10 civilians, sharply escalating a war of words with its powerful Western military backers... (link)
Posted by Dave Markland at 12:18 AM 79 comments
Boy watches US forces shoot father in head
Recent reports indicate that a new stage may have been reached in the war in Afghanistan. Secret operations of CIA and special forces appear to have stepped up their infamous night raids, which have induced fear in much of the local population.
We saw in a blog post a few weeks ago that up to 15 civilians in Laghman were killed in a ground forces operation apparently carried out under NATO command. NATO itself, after initial denials, appeared to acknowledge civilian casualties, but was characteristically vague about it.
Now, according to the article below, it seems that the attack-cum-massacre was carried out at night and, according to locals, perpetrated by US special forces on the ground. (The Washington Post, however, mistakenly reported as late as Dec 30 that the attack was an airstrike.)
US forces 'like to kill us'
Sayed Karim - The National
December 28. 2009
... According to witnesses, US troops entered a number of houses near the provincial capital, Mehtar Lam, in an overnight operation [on Dec 7/8]. The victims included Mohammed Ismail, whose 10-year-old son, Rafiullah, described what happened: "When the soldiers came to our house, my father asked them, 'Who are you?' Then they shot him in the head and told us, 'Be quiet and tell us where the weapons are'."
Said Ahmad Safi, a spokesman for Laghman's governor, said insurgents had previously staged attacks against officials and foreign troops in the area. He acknowledged that 12 people – including a woman – had apparently died in the raid, which locals reported was carried out by US Special Forces...
Discontent with the government and the occupation has inevitably fuelled support for the Taliban among the local population. Despite still being relatively secure compared with much of eastern Afghanistan, there has been growing rebel activity here in recent months as the insurgents edge closer and closer to neighbouring Kabul...
Gulzar Sankerwal, chairman of the provincial council, said: "The Taliban do not fight face to face. This is guerrilla fighting so if more troops arrive, they will not solve the problem. When the commander in Kabul asked Obama for the extra troops, he knew the USA would end up with one achievement, and that is more civilian casualties." ... (link)
Note that in spite of (and because of) the two Obama-ordered troop surges, the insurgency continues to spread, moving closer to Kabul.
So it turns out that the deaths occurred in a nighttime raid, one of what appears to be an increasing number of such operations. The Dec 7/8 disaster was recently repeated in Kunar on Dec 27 and again in Baghlan on Dec 28/29 - an incident which has gone largely unnoticed in the media, though it has now been overshadowed by the Dec 30 incident in Helmand - a daytime missile strike by NATO forces. AFP has more on the Dec 27 Kunar incident:
Nato's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) had no information on any operations or casualties in Kunar.
A senior Western military official told AFP that US special forces have been conducting operations against militants in the border regions of Kunar.
"They have been killing a lot of Taliban and capturing a lot of Taliban," he said.
The operations were conducted independently of ISAF, which number more than 110,000 fighting to eradicate the Taliban, he said... (link)
And yet that may not be the end of the intriguing details. While locals in Kunar say the 8 teenagers were killed in a US special forces raid, AFP reports that they may have been CIA operatives:
NATO forces have disputed the results of the Afghan probe, saying the foreigners involved were non-military Americans on a sanctioned operation who fired in self-defence after being shot at by villagers. (link)
US special forces like the Green Berets or Navy Seals are military personnel while CIA officers are not. Of course, neither are mercenaries such as Blackwater. It seems possible that "non-military Americans" could refer to either CIA or mercs.
In all likelihood, the recent spate of nighttime raids were undertaken by a mix of CIA, special forces and perhaps mercenaries. CIA agents are known to work alongside special forces in Afghanistan and recent reports about Blackwater revealed their involvement in CIA operations there.
Finally, the recent attack in Baghlan, courtesy of the Afghan press since few if any western media reported the incident:
'Four civilians killed in Baghlan air raid'
Habib Rahman Sherzai - Dec 29, 2009
PUL-I-KHUMRI (Pajhwok) - Four civilians have reportedly been killed and eight others wounded in a fresh air strike by foreign forces in northern Baghlan province, residents alleged on Tuesday.
The overnight attack took place in Kohna Qala area of Baghlan-i-Markazi district, residents told Pajhwok Afghan News...
In the last night air raid, the dead included a father and his three sons, who were killed while running to escape the bombardment, a teacher at the Jamiat Aburjaee High School in the area, Karim Safi, told Pajhwok Afghan News. A student of the school, Karim Javed, said that the air raid also left many people wounded including a student of his school.
Head of the district hospital, Abdul Qahir Qanit, said they had received eight injured people delivered to the hospital with a woman and a child in a critical condition... (link)
ANTI-WAR LINKS:
3BAW
Dave Markland
stopwar


Takarazuka Wiki | New member: e_meersie, from Central Michigan!
Forums > Introductions > New member: e_meersie, from Central Michigan!
New member: e_meersie, from Central Michigan!
Hey all, the name's Emma, better known to the internet as e_meersie (you can call me Meersie for short if you like, haha)! I joined the Takarazuka fandom about 2 years ago via tumblr, specifically because I was in search of anything related to The Scarlet Pimpernel. A friend of mine from my university showed me a clip of Chie singing "Madame Guillotine" from that show and I was transfixed by the quality of her singing and the general artistry of the cast. I was amazed. Then one day in the summer following that year, I got the idea to look for more things related to Zuka Pimpernel. To make a long story short, I got invited to my first livestream of Pimpernel and several other Hoshigumi shows and promptly fell into the fandom. I have too many favorite Takarasiennes and OGs to count (I usually have at least two or three from each troupe that I'm particularly fond of), but the one who holds the most of my affection is definitely Chie. I love to talk Takarazuka with other fans, although I don't know any in real life. Regardless, I'm glad to be here!
Hi there, I love Scarlet Pimpernel too (though Tsuki's my favorite). Welcome and have fun!
I'll do my best to contribute when I can!!
Chie's Chauvelin really was goosebump-inducing. The whole 2008 cast really had some amazing chemistry, and the fans knew it! I remember taking the earliest train into Tokyo, arriving at 5:50 am on a weekday, and the toujitsuken line was already wrapped twice around the front of the theater. No chance for tickets that day!


This fortuneteller cartoon by Gahan Wilson was published on The New Yorker Cartoons Instagram. Wilson is known for his dark sense of humor.
Guess some of us don't learn from our mistakes. Good to have a sense of humor about it though. Here's to getting it right, sooner or later.
Reminds me of these funny New Yorker cartoons I included in this post about Coming Back For Love In Five Favorite Romantic Films.
The one on top is where we go to keep learning. The other at the bottom perfectly reminds me of Bill Murray waking up each morning in the brilliant little film Ground Hog Day.
Alex Gregory is astutely funny showing what social media is doing to us.


Image Title: Kitchen Island Table On Wheels With Casters Modern Within Remodel 5. Post Title: Kitchen Island On Casters. Filename: kitchen-island-table-on-wheels-with-casters-modern-within-remodel-5.jpg. Image Dimension: 640 x 480 pixels. Images Format: jpg/jpeg. Publisher/Author: Maximus Lueilwitz. Uploaded Date: Thursday - October 11th. 2018 21:26:11 PM. Category: Architecture. Image Source: lowes.com. Amazon Com Large Kitchen Island Cart Wheels Rolling Roller Throughout On Casters Remodel 0. Mobile Kitchen Islands Ideas And Inspirations With Regard To Island On Casters Remodel 10. Unique Kitchen Island Casters Design Batson After Detail Rend With Within On Ideas 12. Mobile Kitchen Islands Ideas And Inspirations Regarding Island On Casters Plan 19. How To Build A DIY Kitchen Island On Wheels HGTV Within Casters Prepare 1. Fantastic Kitchen Islands On Wheels YouTube For Island Casters Ideas 8. Luxury Idea Kitchen Island On Casters 24 In Decor 14. Kitchen Islands For Small Kitchens On Wheels Throughout Island Casters Designs 3. Kitchen Island On Wheels IKEA Hackers Within Casters Plan 7. Kitchen Island Table On Wheels With Casters Modern Within Remodel 5.


text:
Q: Looping over a vector and check for existence of data.frames with the same name As described in the title I am trying to loop over a vector containing strings, that may or may be the names of data.frames. It doesn't need to be vector, actually it was a data.frame where I extracted one column.
Here is what I've tried:
tables <- as.vector(df.stattributes.run[,1])

this gives

tables
  [1] "ttest"  "ttest2" "mtcars"

Then I'm starting the loop
for (i in 1:length(tables))
  {try(if(!is.data.frame(as.name(tables[i])) == TRUE) stop(paste("Table",tables[i],"doesn't exist.")) else print(paste("Table",tables[i],"found")))}

This always gives back "Table ... not found." although mtcars is an existing data.frame. What can I change to make it work?
Thank you!

A: You can use mget() with inherits=T and ifnotfound=list(NULL) (or any non-data.frame value) and apply is.data.frame() to each:
sapply(mget(tables,inherits=T,ifnotfound=list(NULL)),is.data.frame);
##  ttest ttest2 mtcars
##  FALSE  FALSE   TRUE

The reason why inherits=T is necessary here is that mtcars does not reside in the global environment, which is where mget() will look by default when you run it at top-level. It actually resides in the public environment of the built-in datasets package. You can use find() to identify where an object resides:
find('mtcars');
## [1] "package:datasets"

Also, there are some misconceptions I should address here. The as.name() function is exactly equivalent to as.symbol(). These functions coerce the given argument to the symbol type.
The symbol type is part of R's representation of the R language itself, or in other words of the R parse tree, using R data types. To put it another way, you might say it's part of the R data model of R. See my answer here for more information on this.
Most of the time, most R programmers do not need to work with symbols, because they don't need to "compute on the language", as it's often called (meaning they don't need to manipulate R parse trees).
In your code, you coerce the string value in tables[i] to the symbol type using as.name(), and then you pass the resulting symbol object to is.data.frame(). This is incorrect. Calling is.data.frame() on a symbol object will always return false, because a symbol is not a data.frame. In general, the is.* functions work on the type of the given object; they do not do any kind of "resolution" or "lookup" or "search" to find the ultimate object to which the argument refers; the argument is the object which the is.* function is type-testing.
Second point, you don't need to do == TRUE. If you already have a logical value, then it will already be true, in which case the comparison would leave it as true, or it will already be false, in which case the comparison would leave it as false (or it will already be NA, in which case the comparison would leave it as NA).

Funnily enough, after writing the above explanation I've realized that there's an alternative way to get an object whose name is stored in a string value, and it actually does involve the as.symbol()/as.name() functions I somewhat dismissed above. I'm talking about calling eval() on the symbol object:
head(eval(as.symbol(tables[3L])));
##                    mpg cyl disp  hp drat    wt  qsec vs am gear carb
## Mazda RX4         21.0   6  160 110 3.90 2.620 16.46  0  1    4    4
## Mazda RX4 Wag     21.0   6  160 110 3.90 2.875 17.02  0  1    4    4
## Datsun 710        22.8   4  108  93 3.85 2.320 18.61  1  1    4    1
## Hornet 4 Drive    21.4   6  258 110 3.08 3.215 19.44  1  0    3    1
## Hornet Sportabout 18.7   8  360 175 3.15 3.440 17.02  0  0    3    2
## Valiant           18.1   6  225 105 2.76 3.460 20.22  1  0    3    1
is.data.frame(eval(as.symbol(tables[3L])));
## [1] TRUE

So we can actually say you were on the right track by calling as.name().

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
The Diocese of New York and New Jersey is a diocese of the Orthodox Church in America covering the states of New York and New Jersey. The Cathedral of the Protection of the Holy Virgin on Second Street in Manhattan is the seat of the bishop, with diocesan offices located in Syosset, New York. The diocese is headed by Archbishop Michael Dahulich, the diocesan bishop, who assumed control of the diocese after his consecration to the episcopacy on May 8, 2010.

History

The formal establishment of the Diocese of New York and New Jersey occurred after the OCA was granted autocephaly in 1970. As the diocese was the see of the ruling hierarch of the mission, and later of the autocephalous church, it supported the national Church's administration. The administrative offices were located, first, in New York City at the Holy Protection Cathedral and later, since about 1967, in Oyster Bay Cove, New York.

Upon the establishment of the Diocese of Washington in 1981, the metropolitan and primatal see transferred to the new diocese, leaving New York as a local diocese.

It was merged with the Diocese of Washington in 2005 as the Diocese of Washington and New York. It was restored as a separate diocese in 2009, with Metropolitan Jonah, who remained bishop of the Washington diocese, as Locum tenens.

After the reinstatement of the diocese, meetings were held to prepare for the election of a new hierarch.  Eventually, Fr. Michael Dahulich was chosen, who was then consecrated the following spring and who remains the current bishop of the diocese.

The oldest church in use is the Sts. Peter and Paul Orthodox Church located at Buffalo, New York.

References

External links

New York
Eastern Orthodoxy in New Jersey
Eastern Orthodoxy in New York (state)
Christian organizations established in 1970
Eastern Orthodox organizations established in the 20th century
Dioceses established in the 20th century

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Nabunturan ist eine Stadtgemeinde in der philippinischen Provinz Davao de Oro auf der Insel Mindanao.

Nabunturan ist zudem der Sitz der Provinzregierung von Davao de Oro.

Namensherkunft
Nabunturan war einmal ein Baranggay (Ortsteil) der Gemeinde Compostela. Der Name leitet sich ab von dem Wort bungtod, was so viel heißt wie Hügel.

Die Einheimischen nannten den Ort so, da er sich von der sonst flachen Umgebung der Ebene durch einige Anhöhen abhob und auszeichnete.

Geographie
Nabunturan ist umgeben von der Gemeinde Montevista im Norden, von New Corella im Westen, von Mawab im Südwesten, im Süden von den Gemeinden Maco und Mabini, sowie von Maragusan im Südosten, von New Bataan im Osten und von Compostela im Nordosten.

Die Gemeinde liegt 88 km nördlich von Davao City und ist 33 km von Tagum entfernt.

Das Gemeindegebiet umfasst eine Fläche von 2.412 km². Sie verfügt über insgesamt 1.672 km² agrarwirtschaftlich genutzte Landfläche. 462,8 m² sind dagegen bewaldet und 1.381 Ha sind als Nationalpark ausgewiesen.

Wirtschaft
Die Land- und die Forstwirtschaft bestimmen die wirtschaftlichen Aktivitäten von Nabunturan. Es werden hier hauptsächlich Nutzpflanzen wie Kokosnuss, Weizen, Reis, Bananen und Kautschuk angebaut.

Daneben finden sich einige metall- und holzverarbeitende Handwerksbetriebe.

Baranggays
Nabunturan ist politisch in 28 Baranggays (Ortsteile) untergliedert.

Geschichte
Die Ebene war bereits früh ein Siedlungsgebiet der Volksgruppe der Mansaka, die sich entlang eines Streifens niederließen, der von den Gemeinden Mawab zu dem Baranggay Bankerohan in Montevista reichte. Die ursprüngliche Lage des Baranggay von Nabunturan befand sich entlang der heutigen Provinzstraße zwischen Libasan und Saosao, etwa 4 km vom heutigen Gemeindezentrum entfernt.

Nach Ausbruch des Zweiten Weltkrieges 1941 diente die neue Gemeinschaft als ein Versteck für Guerillakämpfer und einige verbleibende US-Verbände. Doch während der japanischen Besatzung flohen die Kämpfer und viele Zivilisten aus Nabunturan und der Ort wurde zu einem Stützpunkt der japanischen Kampetai Garnison.

Nach dem Krieg landeten im Jahre 1945 amerikanische Truppen in Davao City und die Philippine Civil Assistance Unit (PCAU) richtete eine Zivilregierung für Compostela auf dem Gebiet von Nabunturan ein, da der Ort ein Zugangspunkt von und nach Davao City darstellt. Während der folgenden Jahre wurde Nabunturan zu einem Handelszentrum und einer Leitstelle verschiedener Regierungsdienste. Aus diesem Grund kam alsbald die Notwendigkeit auf, den Ort in eine eigenständige Gemeinde umzuwandeln. Ein Wunsch, der schließlich auch von hohen Politikern unterstützt wurde.

Am 23. Juli 1957 vollzog der Republic Act Nr. 2038 die Trennung Nabunturans von seiner Muttergemeinde Compostela und die Ernennung des ortes zu einer eigenständigen Gemeinde.

Am 30. Januar 1998 unterzeichnete Präsident Fidel Ramos das Gesetz, das Davao de Oro zur 79. Provinz des Landes machte, den Republic Act Nr. 8740. In diesem Zusammenhang wurde der Gemeinde Nabunturan zudem der Hauptsitz der Provinzregierung zuerkannt.

Sehenswürdigkeiten
 Mainit Hotspring Protected Landscape
 Die Pagtulian Fälle
 Die Pasilianan Fälle
 Die Busay Fälle
 Die Heißen Quellen von Bukal
 Die Höhlen in San Vicente, Cabidianan & Mags

Weblinks
 Website zu Nabunturan

Ort auf den Philippinen


text:
Calls for North West vaccinations to be prioritised amid 'stubbornly high' rates
Dominic Harrison has branded the JCVI vaccine strategy as "deeply flawed"
Phase Two includes all adults aged under 50
Blackburn daily updates and information - direct to your email inbox
A Lancashire health boss is calling for coronavirus vaccinations to be prioritised to better recognise the risk in different parts of the country.
Currently, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has this week set out Phase 2 of the vaccine programme, detailing its prioritisation for the under 50s.
The independent advisory committee confirmed that the jabs will be delivered in terms of age group, stating it remains the quickest way to cut deaths, with age still a dominant risk factor for serious illness and death from Covid-19.
This means that phase two of the vaccine rollout, which is expected to begin in April, will start with people aged 40 to 49 before moving on to younger age groups.
However Professor Dominic Harrison, director of public health for Blackburn with Darwen Council, has said the strategy is 'deeply flawed'.
He claims that it fails to address mortality risk by 'place', and that it privileges the south over the north despite there being worse mortality rates in the north.
According to the latest figures published by Public Health England yesterday (February 26), showing deaths with Covid-19 on the death certificate by area, the North West had the highest death rate in England.
The region recorded 249.2 deaths per 100,000 people, with 18,292 fatalaties.
Meanwhile the South East had a much lower rate of 202.5, while the South West rate was 130.1.
Speaking at the vaccination priority list, Prof Harrison called for local authority areas with higher transmission, hospitalisation and mortality risk to be prioritised as well.
He said: "This is priority by age - not risk! All 40-49 year olds are higher risk-but not by place.
"Local Authority areas with with higher transmission, hospitalisation and mortality risk should have also been prioritised.
"Why vaccinate all 40-49 year olds at the same rate across the UK? Many northern Local Government areas have 3x Covid-19 transmission risk and 2x mortality risk as some southern regions.
"We all deserve equal life chances JCVI is effectively privileging the South."
Prof Harrison also said that accelerating the vaccine in Lancashire would prevent the virus spreading once restrictions are lifted.
He added: "Covid-19 could rise fast again in Lancashire on Lockdown lifting-accelerating vaccine rollout could fix this. If Government won't do this, then imposing extra local control measures following higher summer rates, will be unfair, unjust & avoidable."
Other Lancashire leaders have echoed his call.
Matthew Brown, leader of Preston City Council, called for vaccination priority for communities more badly affected by the virus.
In response to Prof Harrison, saying: "Right again from [Prof Harrison]. The infection rate in Preston is remaining stubbornly high.
"If we don't prioritise vaccination for communities more badly affected we potentially face restrictions over summer whereas others will have them lifted."
In Lancashire, as many as 3,850 have now died having contracted the virus.
As of December 26, Blackburn with Darwen had a death rate of 278.6 per 100,000 people, while it was 299.8 for Blackpool and 247.2 for the remaining Lancashire area.
The Phase 2 prioritisation list also came under criticism for not taking into account occupation.
Lancashire's latest Covid infection rates as Rossendale and Ribble Valley show rises
Chorley Hospital A&E to stay open after closure plan is scrapped
Teaching unions have reacted angrily to the news, while the national chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales said it was a "deep and damaging betrayal" of police officers, which "will not be forgotten".
So far, 19,177,555 vaccines doses have been administered across the whole of the UK.
As many as 736,037 people have received their second dose of the vaccine.
EntertainmentTV licence rules for streaming service users including Netflix, Sky, and Amazon Prime and Now TVMake sure you're clued up, as you could be fined up to £1,000 if you break the rules
The life of Steve Pemberton - Happy Valley, Inside Number 9, League of Gentlemen and BAFTA success
The Blackburn boy has done extremely well for himself

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Technology projects are expensive. Really expensive. A hardware refresh can run anywhere from a few thousand to hundreds of thousands for a whole new system. Such a major capital investment requires a lot of diligent research and you need to make sure that you choose the right partner to execute that project on your behalf. But which one? While getting proposals for the project that you need might be the way you have approached this in the past, we think that you should throw those proposals out. Sounds a little crazy right? After all the back and forth, the conversations, the communication of needs, of pain points … Why would you ever throw all that energy away? Shouldn't someone review these documents? Yes and yes. But before you go vetting out a project for a single server refresh or workstation replacement – you might want to consider going another route entirely. Here's a few reasons we think that you should throw out your IT project proposals – and what you can do instead.
They don't really address your needs.
Let's look at what happened that made you initiate your request for a proposal to begin with. Let me guess: something broke, right? Something is no longer working properly for you and you need it replaced with something else so you can get back to work and be productive. So you went on Google and you found some IT companies and you requested proposals for "a new server" or "new workstations". You answered a few questions – the number of people you're supporting, how you access information, what your infrastructure looks like now – and maybe a few other questions. A few hours later – you got proposals. And now you're looking at them and you have no idea what they mean. You think they're offering up a solution to your issues, since you communicated the issues you were having – but the problem is that they don't account for the aged software application that's bogging down your users, or the fact that your salespeople can't access the appropriate files on the road. They only fix the fact that you need a new server.
They force you to focus on the one thing that you should never focus on.
When it comes to these types of things, money is always an issue. You need to make sure you spend the least amount that you have to spend to keep your technology functioning properly so that your organization can run efficiently and you don't have to worry about it anymore. But what happens when you focus on price? Really, though – let's say it together: you get what you paid for. So stop looking at numbers on "apples to apples" proposals and start looking at the thing that matters the most – your business.
They don't account for your future.
Why focus on your business? Because all of a sudden, your business has grown. You have more employees and more work and the workflows that were so perfect when you were a small organization just aren't working anymore. The technology that you once used is slowing you down. It's dated. And you need to change it. But when you change out a server or "refresh some workstations" – your proposals aren't accommodating for how you've grown and how your technology can support that growth. You need something that serves you now and in the future. Perhaps a cloud move would be great for you, perhaps you should look into new line of business applications, perhaps a custom software solution and business automation is something you need. The point is – that if you just go asking for proposals for a project or a new server you'll never evolve into the business that you want to be with technology that services your needs now and in the future.
So, what's the solution? Now that I've convinced you to throw out your project proposals – how do you fix your problem? Start a relationship. Bring on a consultant or a Managed Services Provider with a strategy manager that can help you break down your businesses processes, find bottlenecks, assess your line of business application and address your needs. Perhaps you'll find along the way that the proposals you were getting weren't what you needed – maybe you needed the cloud, or a new application, or a different internet service provider – a combination of many different things. Fixing things is great, because when things break they need to be replaced or repaired. But taking a comprehensive approach and bringing in a partner that can truly exact changes in your organization with business technology is always the best investment.


Jaguar revealed further details about the new partnership with the Bloodhound World Land Speed Record project following the significant high-speed test in South Africa earlier in the month, which marked the start of a major technical partnership between Jaguar and Bloodhound.
The test took place on the relatively soft surface of the Hakskeen Pan desert in the Northern Cape of South Africa, where the dynamic ability of the new all-wheel drive F-TYPE R Coupé – making its global motor show debut today in Los Angeles – enabled the successful completion of a vital communications test for the Bloodhound SSC team.
Jaguar is perfectly positioned to provide key technical knowledge and engineering innovation, resulting in direct performance benefits to the Bloodhound programme. As a 'Main Partner' and 'Innovation Partner', Jaguar will assist Bloodhound in raising the World Land Speed Record above 1,000mph, as well as helping to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers, which is the overall objective of the project. The current record stands at 763.035mph and was set by Andy Green in Thrust SSC in 1997. As driver of the Bloodhound Supersonic Car, Andy Green will once again look to push the boundaries of human achievement when he attempts to break the record in 2015 and achieve in excess of 1000mph in 2016.
On the Jaguar stand at the LA Auto Show today Andy Green revealed further details of the partnership including the integration of the Jaguar engine into Bloodhound SSC. Jaguar's 5.0-litre 550PS supercharged V8 engine will play a key role in the running of the car providing essential hydraulic services and also driving the rocket's oxidiser pump. This pump will supply 800-litres of High Test Peroxide (HTP) to the rocket in just 20 seconds – equivalent to 40-litres (over nine gallons) – every second.
Jaguar is also assisting in the development of Andy Green's cockpit design, creating the ultimate driving environment and providing Andy with the precision control required for the essential systems including electrics, hydraulics, engine start and control systems, safety monitoring and braking.
Finally, Jaguar confirmed it will be providing two high performance Rapid Response Vehicles to support Bloodhound SSC in the desert during the record runs in 2015 and 2016.
Phil Popham, Global Marketing Director, Jaguar said: "The Bloodhound project is one of the most inspirational and innovative currently in existence. Jaguar is delighted to be part of a project which inspires the next generation of scientists and engineers, whilst also supporting Jaguar's commitment to high performance technology and our mission of advancing knowledge and improving lives. We are delighted to be able to provide direct engineering support for the Bloodhound project to assist in the achievement of their ambitions and it is fantastic to have Andy Green here today supporting Jaguar's partnership announcement".
Bloodhound SSC driver and current World Land Speed Record holder, Andy Green said: "It's great news to have Jaguar as a Main Partner and Innovation Partner to the Bloodhound Project. Jaguar's engineering and innovation knowledge is invaluable and the technological expertise Jaguar brings to the powertrain integration will provide a genuine performance enhancement to the project. While driving Bloodhound SSC I need to know I will have the responsiveness, performance and reliability required to power the rocket fuel pump and the Jaguar engine is the perfect tool for the job".
Bloodhound Project Director and former World Land Speed Record holder, Richard Noble said: "The recent communications test in South Africa proved that Jaguar is the perfect partner for the Bloodhound project. The AWD F-TYPE R Coupé performed exceptionally well on the Hakskeen Pan and we are looking forward to returning for the World Land Speed Record attempts next year with the specially prepared Rapid Response Vehicles – this is a genuinely exciting time for the project and we're delighted Jaguar are part of our journey".
BLOODHOUND SSC is currently being assembled at the BLOODHOUND Technical Centre in Bristol, UK. It is on schedule for roll out summer 2015 where it will undergo UK runway testing up to 200mph (321km/h) at the Aerohub, Newquay, UK. The Team will then deploy to South Africa to begin high speed testing with the target of reaching 800mph (1,287km/h). The Team will return to the UK to review the data and return to South Africa in 2016 with the aim of reaching 1,000mph (1,609km/h).
Land Rover Discovery Sport or Tata Motors Q501 SUV?


text:
wes chatham workout
I mean it's obviously pretty surreal considering, you know, everything that happened and what we went through and then we're coming back. That's what a great dramatic scene should be – you have somebody that wants something more than anything in the world, and then you have something in his way that's very formidable. Chatham's break into acting came just three months before his tour was finis… And the first time I did that was the London [Film and] Comic Con because I was going to be in Europe anyway, and they reached out and said, 'would you come?' And I said 'yeah', and I had such a good time. His sister was then taken for the Tide commercial by his mother in Savannah, Georgia, where Wes was brought along. Making a short while I'm up here with some of the cast members just for fun, like getting together, you know? Especially with films like The Philly Kid, – I'd actually seen that one a few months ago and thought that it was really cool – how much do you get to utilize that experience on screen? Definitely got a few spot in the right place at the right time credits to your favor there. And, so, it was a warm night so we didn't think much about it. The Expanse is a television show based on the novels by James S.A. Corey. It was great fun for us and we hope you've enjoyed the conversation as much as we did. But this is something that I'm a fan of, like I said earlier. Kyle- Seems like [stage combat] performance is really your bread and butter, then; do you have any particular stories in mind along those lines that you've been thinking about writing or putting together for a while? The worlds that he creates these stories in are always really interesting to me. Ed- Right. And if he can shoot you in the back of the head, he'll shoot you in the back of the head, you know? Or, somebody that's supposed to be a trained martial artist who doesn't really know how to throw a punch. https://t.co/QxM47YeZuV, RT @ExpanseOnPrime: Not even Avasarala can keep her cool. he is a American Actor. Wes- Psychiatrist, yeah I did. Meet John Nash Chatham!. What I did is I started back with The Churn and I used that as the foundation to create the psychology, and used my imagination of what happened to him in the past and what has shaped him; moulded him to become who he is today and how did he and Naomi's relationship come about, how did he meet her, how did that become forged? – Hades (2018) című filmekben. Ed- Right, it's subtle but it's very complex. Chatham's parents divorced when he was two and he spent most of his childhood with his mother, sister and brother. And again, what's interesting about this is that I've worked on plenty of other things where as soon as it was done, I'm done. expansesource. How is he gonna get what he wants? When I read The Churn, that was most interesting to me. I mean when you met Denzel Washington, when he chose your ship [for Antwone Fisher]? But, you know, it beats – when I was in the military for four years, it beats that. I moved on, you know. So I decided that I was gonna read a book per season: In the off-season, when I finish, I'll read the book that we're gonna shoot the next season. Photo courtesy of Syfy. 69.8k Followers, 346 Following, 826 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Wes Chatham (@officialweschatham) I mean it's obviously pretty surreal considering, you know, everything that happened and what we went through and then we're coming back. This week's special guests on The Expanse Aftershow are EP & writer Dan Nowak and…, RT @PrimeVideo: THIS WEEK ON...THE EXPANSE: The scale of Marco Inaros' plan is revealed. I think I got home at like 6:30 AM. Ed- Ah yeah, I think some things like that happen sometimes. The one thing I geek out over the most is: '80s films. Is it going to change your approach at all, dealing with new external factors? And so in that way it serves me greatly. After graduating high school, Wes joined the military. Wes Chatham-It's great. You were already familiar with the material before the show, is that true? You know like with the chicken guy? What's interesting is that the better researched I am and the more accurate I show his reaction to things, the fans really are very astute – they're very quick to pick up what's happening and they'll send me tweets and emails, and I'm just really impressed how they understand the psychology of Amos. I really enjoyed talking to you guys and I really appreciate all the support and love you guys give us. He worked as an aviation firefighter on the flight deck of the USS Essex, working in crash and salvage for four years. I will say, it's especially cool from a fan perspective. Thank you so much for taking the time. But then when you play someone like Amos… Amos is not as trained or skilled, he more has a talent for violence – he's a talented amateur. Although he is known by his stage name Wes Chatham, his full name is John Wesley Chatham. But I always want to use that physical expression – relate it in a way that's honest from the character. The couple exchanged their vows with each other in 2012. He is originally from Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Ed Akselrud- So Wes, how is everything on set? That's just not how he's going to do it. #the expanse #theexpanseedit #wes chatham #shohreh aghdashloo #cast #bts. Wes- Yeah, that one and the tool scene, when Prax's oxygen got knocked loose and the tools are flying all over the machine shop and I was flying upside down and everything… it was challenging. Regardez DJ Wes - Espace Majestic - Soirée CO² - Mokobé - Wesley sur Dailymotion È noto principalmente per aver recitato nei film Nella valle di Elah, The Help, Hunger Games: Il canto della rivolta - Parte 1 e Hunger Games: Il canto della rivolta - Parte 2. So I immediately said "I wanna go in for Amos", but I think they were already thinking of seeing me for Amos anyway. Kyle- So is that what you would consider the most challenging scene that you've had to shoot so far, or was there one earlier in the seasons that you would consider, something that tried you a little bit harder? When Wes was just two years old his parents got divorced. The one thing that we all agree with and I think is one of the things that really holds this show together is that pretty much everyone that's involved with it is a fan of it. Découvrez toutes les infos sur Wes Chatham, sa biographie, sa filmographie complète, son actualité. On a whim, Wes's mother took his sister to a audition for a Tide commercial in Savannah, Georgia and brought Wes along. Born out of the #SaveTheExpanse movement, we aim to continue the work of promoting the show and its incredible fandom. Is there something that you recall? It's pretty spectacular, same guy that wrote the Hamilton book that the musical was based on [Ron Chernow]. I started when I was really young and I was always drawn to story, you know. Ed- Can you tell us more about that experience? Regarder maintenant Dans Le Cinéma Bientôt Cinémas Derniers remorques Nouvelles Trouver Film Commentaires I was actually studying acting in San Diego at the time, when I was in port. And when Denzel was shooting the Antwone Fisher story on my ship, that was how I met Robi Reed and how everything got started for me. His net worth has been estimated to be around $1 million. Wes Chatham: femme, l'Amour, la Famille et les Amis Wes Chatham avec jolie, femme Jenn Brown Qui sort avec Wes Chatham en 2020? But it's interesting because when you talk about stories that I would like to tell, or kind of gravitate towards, I'm a huge Stephen King fan. 'Cause it's not in your face, it's very subtle, he has subtle behaviour. Filmographie Cinéma. Ensemble ils ont deux enfants nés en 2014 [1] et en 2016 [2]. If I need to get out and get moving and kind of exorcise those demons and then I can come back and really focus on work. Thank you. Here's what The Expanse's Wes Chatham had to say. Wes Chatham Age, Height, Net Worth, Wiki, And Bio: Wes Chatham was born in North Georgia, United States. Wes- Yeah, it is a special thing, and that's why we fight so hard to keep it. How would you say that your martial arts experience translates into your on screen performances? So we had a long talk about that. He does not have a tough guy bravado ego, he doesn't. Being a part of the world, it's really kind of a special feeling. Disclaimer: This interview contains some small spoilers for Season 4 during the first half. Wes's parents divorced when he was two and he spent most of his childhood with his Mom, sister and brother. While searching for some authentic military guys for the movie, Chatham was … Chatham gained an attention when he was cast as Corporal Steve Penning in "In the Valley of Elah" by Paul Haggis. I went to London [Film and] Comic Con not too long ago and got to meet a lot of the fans and the people that are into the show, and it's just, it's a really interesting community. On a whim, Chatham's mother took his sister to an audition for a Tide commercial in Savannah, Georgia, and brought Wes along. Ed- It actually led to you acting, is that right? Some of his credits include Baby Bleed, Husk, W., This Thing with Sarah, Broken Horses, All I See is You, Barbershop, The Unit, The Mentalist, Hand of God, The Night Shift and more. And that really bothers me. The fallout from last episode's actions reverberat…, September 20, 2019, by Film School Rejects, The Expanse Cast Recalls Their Favourite (And Funniest) Fan Encounters, The Expanse (Collector's Edition) 2LP Color Vinyl Set Coming Dec. 13, Jess Salgueiro on 'The Expanse' Season 4, 'The Boys', and Netflix's 'Jupiter's Legacy', 'The Expanse' Season 4 Premiere to Screen at New York Comic-Con, Gravity is a Real Bitch: Hard Science Fiction in 'The Expanse'. John Wesley "Wes" Chatham (Atlanta, 11 ottobre 1978) è un attore statunitense. It was so interesting and so terrifying, but it went into a lot of Russian history and that area. I let it manifest itself in whatever was truthful to me and so I didn't allow that to be really affected by the actual books as much. A lot of folks are really interested in hearing about your routines. He worked as an aviation firefighter on the flight deck of the USS Essex, working in crash and salvage for four years. Wes Chatham, Actor: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2. [Laughs] You know, every Comic Con that I've been to, mainly San Diego Comic Con, I've always been connected to a project. And it comes from a place of weakness. And so he understands how to use his power and strength but he's not James Bond. Wes- Yes, I'm always writing things down, and there's a few things I'm interested in and I've thought about a few times. And it clears my mind of all the noise, and then it kind of gives me a clear platform to be more creative and more open and vulnerable in the moment. Cart I think that this story deserves to be able to live at its fullest expression and its fullest potential. Really great writer, it's a great book. Ed- Oh no, but we should. A lot of time ego and bravado comes from fear. When you're shooting in the summer – which I love, I love coming up here in the summer and the fall – but when you get hot n' sweaty the tattoos are really hard to keep on. I started doing that when I was really young and I did some theatre when I was young, so it was always something that I wanted to do or was interested in. I mean, obviously there's the script that you're being given and the factors that come into your on-screen performance, but how much do you feel like the books and your reading of that really influences your character? Wes- Well, yeah – you know that Amos is always in search of his morality. Thanks for telling us that. We'll leave it at that. Yeah, Amos is definitely gonna be awakening things in him that impact his behaviour that he hasn't really felt in a long time. So on behalf of the entire fan community, thank you so much for being who you guys are and for taking the effort that it takes to do your very hectic job. But the weather's changing, so…. And the only thing in each other's way is each other. Is that going to change how you adapt Amos for the coming season? Wes Chatham was born October 11, 1978, and grew up in North Georgia. Kyle- How's the make up doing in the new weather – does that change things up as well? And so in that way it helps greatly. Steven the House Mom at … I am that guy" My Demo Reel. I hope we can continue this symbiotic relationship for many many years. Log in Sign up. Thanks for reading! And I don't know yet if I would direct it, but I do think that writing is something that I'm interested in. Although – I believe it was Season 3 – and I was between the walls, and we were getting attacked and I was getting thrown around the walls…. Wes- Oh yeah, yeah. Ed- That's fantastic. Without more supervision and as a restless and rebellious teen, Wes was kicked out of his high school. Ed- So you mentioned something interesting while you were answering that – you pointed out to one of the directors is that Amos wouldn't do a certain thing, and I'm curious to know more about that. So you know I've got to sit back and think 'how would Amos physically express himself in this situation?'. But Amos was the only thing I was really interested in. Wes's parents divorced when he was two and he spent most of his childhood with his Mom, sister and brother. A couple of weeks ago, we had the pleasure of interviewing Wes Chatham (Amos Burton). And I told him what I just told you guys – that I wanted to be a part of storytelling, that I've always wanted to be a part of making movies or TV or things like that. Wes Chatham wiki, bio, age, height, workout, net worth, wife, tattoo, tv show November 14, 2018. While waiting for his sister, Chatham was spotted by a casting director and at the age of 5, West was offered a national campaign for the Tide. Their first child named John Nash was born in 2015 and their second child named Rhett Jameson was born in 2016. So I did a lot of research into that and his mental health and also into trauma. It was on a Friday, and we had to make the day – I think it was towards the end of the last [previous] block. There's a book that just came out, I think it was this year, I just finished that – it's called The Body Keeps the Score, and it's a book about the history of trauma and abused children, sexually abused children. Photo courtesy of After Dark Films. But even when it comes to sports, if you look at boxing or you look at MMA, what really attracts people to that is – there is the excitement of the violence and all that – but the reality is it's the story. So I never really been to a Comic Con on my own. Wes- Yeah, so again like I said – I love story, I'm a huge fan of story, so I sit back and I think 'what are the things that I'm interested in? And I said to them, you know, the thing that I want people to understand – which sometimes I have to let new directors know – is that Amos does not have an ego in that way. He spent most of his childhood with his mother, brother, and sister. Wes- Yeah, correct. There's this scene in the bar where this guy was picking on Alex, and I come in, and the way it was written was like – I tap him on the shoulder, and we get into an argument and then, you know, we get into this kinda long choreographed fight. Wes- When it's cold, the tattoos and stuff are easy, because it's so cold and your skin is dry, and everything stays on. Kyle- That's just luck right. Statut rélation: Marié (Depuis 2012) Orientation sexuelle: Hétéro: femme de Wes Chatham: Jenn Brown: Ses ex-petites amies ou épouses: Des Enfants? I'm constantly researching and developing, and trying to be honest about his struggle and what exactly he's going through. That kind of training and that outlet that I have is kind of meditative for me. And we could not believe it. he was born on 11 Oct 1978 in North Georgia, United States.Her is nationality American. Photo courtesy of Amazon Prime Video. I can't remember where we were, but we were in the ocean, and we were looking out at the ocean and talking about what our dreams were, what we wanted to do, and he asked me what I wanted to do. So we're sitting there and we're talking to this guy and I said like 'he would take this can of chicken and smash this guy's face, and get over on top of him even though he's a small guy and everything like that, but the thing is he's gonna get the answers and this is the fastest way he can.'. This really means a lot to us. Additionally, he and his wife, Brown also has two children together. And then if you watch a boxing match, that is a perfect scene, and so that's what I've always been interested in. He worked as an aviation firefighter on the flight deck of the USS Essex, working in crash and salvage for four years. Right now I'm reading the latest Grant book, you guys read that? Jul 31, 2019 - Buona giornata #workout #work #summer2019 #summeroutfit He made his 1 million dollar fortune with In the Valley of Elah, The Philly Kid, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay. Kyle- Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seemed to me that some of the tattoos we see on Amos on screen are some of your personal tattoos, is that right? I think that's been the show's superpower – we come in on our days off and we really do the hard work of diving into the characters, and we even block it, we block the scenes. Discover more posts about wes-chatham. Kyle- Hopefully so. When you get to Leviathan Wakes, I think it's like 20 or 30 years after The Churn – I can't remember exactly how many years – but it's definitely a significant amount of time has passed and he has grown up from then. And, so we started the first half of the scene on the first block, and that was still early fall so it was a warm night, and so my wardrobe – I'm coming from something – and so I don't have a full wardrobe.
Studentenwerk Oberfranken Bafög, Dell Precision 7710 Test, Kinoprogramm Rapperswil Leuzinger, Ulmer Wochenblatt Bekanntschaften, Festool Akku 18v 5 2ah, Conny Gundermann Jung, Griechisches Restaurant Rotenburg An Der Fulda, Nikolaus Paryla Kinder, Luxus Wohnung Konstanz Mieten, Webcam Aquazoo Düsseldorf,


In January's MBM, which hits the newsstands tomorrow, we feature the results of the most comprehensive rope cutter test ever undertaken by a magazine.
Six of the biggest rope cutter brands on the market took part in the experiment – Stripper, Gator, Spurs, Plastimo, R&D, Prop Protector and Shaft Knife.
We threw everything at them: polypropylene and nylon rope, monofilament and nylon netting, heavy-duty tarpaulin, copper cable and finally steel wire.


Have your driver's license and auto registration available.
Input coverage duration: date of build from 7:00 AM for 2 days.
Input destination as Baja California.
Input vehicle information, insurance company name, and Leinholder if applicable.
Print policy and keep a copy in your car during the trip.
Got Sentri or global entry?
Register your car and skip the line.
If you already have Sentri or Global Entry, all you need to do is register your car for crossing the US-Mexico border by land. Use the information below to register your car. Once your car is registered and approved, you may begin crossing in the Sentri/ Global Entry lanes. Please be aware that only passengers who have Sentri or Global Entry may cross in your vehicle at the border. Those that do not have either will need to use the pedestrian crossing.
Instructions from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website.
Visit your Trusted Traveler Program portal.
Select add vehicle on your dashboard.
Pay the $42 processing fee.
Processing takes 3-5 months for approval.
Once you are approved you may cross the border in the Sentri/ Global Entry lanes.


World-renowned filmmaker Steven Spielberg is hoping to add another title to his already impressive resume as he dips his foot into the world of DC Comics.
Debuting in 1941's Military Comics No. 1, the series was originally owned by Quality Comics before being bought by DC in 1956. The comics revolved around an international group of heroic pilots led by a man named Blackhawk who fought Nazis and others during World War II. At the height of its popularity in the early 1940s, Blackhawk titles routinely outsold every other comic book, Superman being the only exception.
David Koepp, a frequent collaborator of Spielberg is said to be writing the script.
Spielberg will produce the film together with Kristie Macosko Krieger, under the Amblin Entertainment banner, while former studio executive Sue Kroll will executive produce under Kroll & Co. Entertainment.
Are you excited for Blackhawk? Let us know how you feel in the comments below!