text:
Focus on growth, talent
November 14, 2011 Reprints
Agents & Brokers More + Less -
Growth, pricing and talent are major issues facing insurance brokers, says David McGurn, newly elected chairman of the Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers. Mr. McGurn, who also is a corporate vp of Itasca, Ill.-based Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., says preservation of the private health care system, regulatory issues and attracting the next generation of talent also are key issues for the CIAB.
Q: What are the greatest challenges for the council and its members?
A major challenge for members is growth. The economy has made it very difficult for our clients to grow organically, which also makes it difficult for our members to grow. Growth is a must.
The other challenge is soft pricing, which has impacted revenues and the need to find new business. We don't know how long the soft market will continue, but the council's latest commercial property/casualty survey indicates that, in general, rates are flattening and may be moving slightly higher. January renewals may tell a different tale.
A big internal challenge is attracting and cultivating talent. There is an age gap between existing agency leadership and the next generation of leaders that is a result of the difficulty in attracting new talent into our industry. There is also a pending knowledge gap resulting from a lack of good formalized training that supports not only the technical insurance skills needed but also the consultative sales process.
Our No. 1 federal legislative priority continues to be the preservation of the private market for employee benefits. Our parochial concern is preserving broker compensation, and we continue to push for a legislative and regulatory solution that would remove broker commissions from the medical loss ratio equation. But more broadly, our members are hearing directly from their clients that there is anxiety about the future of maintaining current benefit packages, should their market competitors opt to exit the health benefit marketplace once state exchanges are fully operational. Clients are consistently telling our members that they won't be the first to exit the market, but probably won't be the third, either. Of course, that has huge implications for the future of our business, and also the viability and solvency of the government exchanges.
We continue to push for passage of the National Assn. of Registered Agents and Brokers Reform Act to streamline licensing of nonresident agents and brokers, and remain hopeful that consensus among all stakeholders will enable a bill to be dropped in the Senate soon.
On the federal regulatory front, we're completely supportive of the new director of the Federal Insurance Office, Mike McRaith, and his efforts to build an office that achieves the goals and spirit of data collection without regulatory duplicity and international harmonization of insurance regulatory regimes.
We continue to monitor the states' implementation of the surplus lines reform provisions of the Nonadmitted and Reinsurance Reform Act. We are disappointed that it has not gone as smoothly as hoped, as the requirements of the law were very simple: that the home state of the insured would have sole regulatory authority over that surplus lines placement. Instead, we've ended up with multiple methods for compliance among the states. While the implementation of sweeping changes like this is never easy, we believe that once we get past some of these early bumps in the road, the reforms will benefit all those involved in the surplus lines marketplace: brokers, carriers and, most importantly, our clients.
Actually, I believe we are getting better at attracting the best and the brightest. Many of our members have summer internships for undergraduates and entry-level programs that have become very attractive to college graduates. Also, the Foundation for Agency Management Excellence, the council's 501(c)(3) charitable foundation, has been giving more scholarships to students enrolled in insurance and risk management programs throughout the United States and beyond. These scholarships help the industry by bringing awareness to a potential career that was previously unknown to these students.
There are so many different areas of insurance that the brokerage community should be able to attract young people from almost every educational background. The career opportunities are immense.
Develop more insurance knowledge than your competitor, and understand and network the insurance underwriting community better than anyone. Treat your clients as your No. 1 priority and, with a little luck, you will be successful.
This article appears in a special editorial feature 'The Business of Better Broking,' which includes profiles of the most productive agents and brokers, exclusive rankings and more. Download a PDF version here.
Technology key to success for Mid American
Frank Crystal wins with client service
BB&T reduces costs, enhances service
Lack of organic growth boosts M&A activity
Economy offers chance to attract new talent
PERSPECTIVES: As deals pick up, stay focused on value
Following utterly dismal years for merger and acquisition activity in 2009 and 2010, this year is shaping up to be one of the best on record. It's possible that we'll see more announced deals in 2011 than the nearly 300 that closed in 2008. This new momentum will likely continue into 2012 and beyond.


Roberto Vianni offers classic footwear, designed with comfort, quality and versatility. Each piece transcends the seasons with its' effortless to wear style. A fabulous range of heeled boots to beach flats.


Shut Up Legs! is a non-traditional but really entertaining cycling autobiography. It covers former pro cyclist Jens Voigt's life both on and off the bike in an original and unique way. Well worth a read.
Since he retired, Jens Voigt has been almost more visible than when he was racing, and naturally his most famous saying has been right at the forefront of this. So far it is both the name of his clothing line and the name of his autobiography.
Unlike most ex-pro autobiographies, Jens starts off by saying that he cannot really remember much about the specifics of races and so much of the book talks in general terms rather than specific attacks or breakaways.
Normally this would be a bit annoying, but here it doesn't really take away from the narrative of the book. Instead, rather than looking at his individual victories or the feelings he had in the break, it looks at how he felt about his teammates, coaches and the pro peloton in general. It works well and gives a new and interesting perspective on professional cycling.
Given his expansive career, this is probably the best way to cover it, and he deals with a whole range of things, from being raised in West Germany through to his thoughts on Lance Armstrong and the doping culture. Each is approached in his characteristic excitable way and I have never seen the word 'super' used before so many words before in one book.
Having recently read Geraint Thomas's The World of Cycling According to G and David Millar's The Racer, this book straddles the line between the two nicely. It has a semi-linear narrative going through Jens' career, but at the same time addresses elements of how he races, crashing, sharing rooms, training techniques, thoughts on why he's been successful and so on, as chapters in themselves. It doesn't go into the technical detail that you often find in discussing the type of bike used, the gearing ratios and that kind of thing, but instead looks at more emotive parts of racing.
It also has some great images of Jens throughout his career in a couple of glossy sections. These add to the resonance of what he's saying and serve to give pictorial evidence to some of what he discusses. However, he also throws in some really nice chapter introductions from his ex-teammates and coaches discussing their thoughts on Jens regarding a specific chapter or topic. It makes it really interesting to not just hear the inner monologue of the man, but also the perception that others had of him or the events he is discussing.
The hardback version of the book has an RRP of £16.99, but it can also be bought as an e-book for £9.99.
Overall, the book is a really excellent read, is quite well written and expansive without ever going overly technical. The one enduring thing I got from the book is that Jens's perception of being a genuinely nice person isn't just a persona for the cameras, it really comes across. You can see his passion for riding and his disdain for doping really shine through, and while many co-authored autobiographies tend to lose a bit of the voice of the subject, this manages to keep it very much intact.
This is an accurate description of the book. It looks at all elements of professional cycling and Jens's opinions of some of it.
Interesting book that kept me entertained throughout.
An entertaining and enlightening book, so did exactly what it needed to.
How it managed to still keep Jens's voice despite having the input of a second author. I couldn't read it in anyone's voice except his.
Maybe needs a little more detail for those who are into that sort of thing.
Really interesting book that covers every aspect it needs to without getting bogged down in too much detail. It discusses everything I wanted it to, looking at everything that made Jens one of the best loved cyclists of the past 20 years.
raised in west Germany ???
513 grams!! I'm going to wait for the paperback.
But surely the hardback version is stiffer?
Both are verbally compliant but one demonstrates more literal stiffness.
How did get from East Germany to West Germany?


Enjoy the most unique event venues in the city!
To schedule your next event at Topeka Zoo call: 785-783-4264.
Opening in 2019, this Asian-themed garden features traditional Koi ponds, bridges, lush landscapes, and exquisite architectural elements. The contemporary event center provides modern amenities and seats over 300 people at round tables. The dedicated bridal suite opens to a secluded garden, promoting peace and relaxation. Overlooking the largest pond, an open-air pavilion offers a gorgeous ceremony location or overflow seating.
Opening Fall 2018! Journey into Africa, Camp Cowabunga is a Safari-themed exhibit, home to our African lions, painted dogs, and patas monkeys. This unique space seats 152 people at round tables.
In the heart of Camp Cowabunga is Dung Beetle Square. This spacious outdoor venue is ideal for a grand reception and ceremony.
Overlooking the Giraffe habitat, our open-air pavilion is ideal for wedding ceremonies and receptions. The Security Benefit Pavilion is 3,000 square feet and can seat 200 guests.
The Northern Lawn is lush grassland. Sitting on the shores of one of Topeka Zoo's iconic ponds, the lawn provides endless possibilities for any ceremony or reception. Seat up to 350 people in this outdoor space.
The Gary K. Clarke Education Center can accommodate up to 75 people, includes restroom facilities, tables, chairs and has an optional screen/projector and sound system.
The Gary K. Clarke Education Center is available for after-hours events (after the zoo closes at 5 p.m.). After-hours rental does not include admission for guests to tour the Zoo grounds. Zoo tours and access to exhibits can be included for an additional fee.


Just because this beautiful standard Bambino Model in Antiqueburst is our most affordable Benedetto doesn't mean it's easy to acquire. It's becoming more infrequent that we produce any instruments just for our Bob's Boutique inventory. Increasingly, our team of luthiers have their hands full building custom orders. So this Antiqueburst Bambino could be your last opportunity to say "Send me that guitar right away!" New orders take about 6 months. So don't hesitate if this Bambino has your name on it!


Hello, which room would you suggest for a family of 4? Two adults and two children aged 1 and 2. Can I confirm that you provide baby cots on request?
Does this hotel have open air bathroom, or is it only the suites? Do they have a private beach? Thanks.
"Consiglio stanze vista piscina, evitare quelle sul corridoio"


The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) allows citizens of participating countries to travel to the U.S. without a visa for stays of 90 days or less, when they meet all requirements set out below. Travelers must be eligible to use the VWP and have a valid Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) approval prior to travel. If you are eligible to travel on the VWP, but prefer to have a visa in your passport, you may still apply for a visitor (B) visa. At Verma Law Firm, our experienced San Jose immigration attorney and team are prepared to help you apply for the Visa Waiver Program.
Aliens entering the U.S. on VWP can only engage in activities permitted under the B visa. Transiting or traveling through the U.S. to Canada or Mexico is generally permitted for VWP travelers.
What Activities are Not Allowed on the VWP?
Although there are many different activities which are permitted, there are some restrictions. If you are in the United States on a VWP or B visa, you are not allowed to be employed, study for credit, work as foreign press in a job of information media, such as press, radio, film, or journalism, and you may not permanently reside in the U.S. There are currently 37 countries which participate in the VWP, including Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.
Schedule your consultation to meet with a San Jose immigration lawyer by calling us at (408) 560-4622!


Follow the National Road Athens to Korinthos and then Korinthos to Kalamata. After the exit "Megalopolis" you will find the exit "Leontari", which is the one you will follow. In the cross you will turn left and follow the road for about 1 to 2 km looking for signs to Neda and Abeliona, where you should turn right to the exit with a bridge and right to the bridge. You will come across the train rails and keep on the road to Lykaio. Caution, you will not cross the village Lykaio. You will turn left approximately to the middle of the village; there is a sign to Abeliona. You will find 600m approximately of dirt road, keep driving to this direction for Neda. After a while you will reach your destination.The route from Athens to Abeliona is about 2,5 hours.
Signs to Abeliona exist to whole route from Leontari and on.


text:
Lowell Libson & Jonny Yarker Ltd
Back to Pictures Previous Next
John Hamilton Mortimer
Head of Bardolph
17 × 13 ⅞ inches · 432 × 352 mm
Drawn in 1774
Engraved:
Etched and published by J. H. Mortimer, 20 May 1775. Inscribed: 'BARDOLPH./My Lord do you see these meteors? Do you behold/ these exhalations?/ Henry the IV Act the II Scene the 9.'
Presumably Jane Mortimer sale, Christie's 25 March 1808, lot.21;
Gilbert Benthall (1880-1961);
William Drummond;
Private collection to 2018
Gilbert Benthall, John Hamilton Mortimer ARA Drawings and Engraved Works, with a Revised Account of his Life, typescript MS, London, Victoria and Albert Museum, p.196;
John Sunderland, 'John Hamilton Mortimer: His Life and Works', The Walpole Society, 1986, vol.52, cat.no. 96.5a, pp.162-163 (as location unknown).
This grandly worked drawing was made by John Hamilton Mortimer in preparation for his celebrated series of engravings depicting twelve characters from Shakespeare which were exhibited at the Society of Artists in 1775. This was the major graphic project of Mortimer's life; he enlisted the celebrated actor David Garrick to manage the subscription and dedicated the plates to the new President of the Royal Academy, Sir Joshua Reynolds. The engravings themselves represented a major shift in the visual treatment of Shakespeare: rather than showing dramatic scenes from plays, Mortimer created evocative heads that capture the characters and in one case, the Poet from A Midsummer Night's Dream, the personification of imagery in the text, rather than an actual member of the cast. Enormously popular following their publication in 1776, the prints were reissued by Thomas Palser in 1812 and 1816, but only six of the original drawings were identified by John Sunderland, making the rediscovery of the present sheet hugely significant. Preserved in outstanding condition, this drawing offers remarkable evidence for the process Mortimer used to make his etchings as well as underlining his spectacularly assured draughtsmanship.
Mortimer's twelve drawings were exhibited together at the Society of Artists in 1775 and represent the last great artistic project of his life. Articled initially to the portrait painter Thomas Hudson, Mortimer left his apprenticeship early to work with the radical history painter and portraitist Robert Edge Pine. Trained as a portraitist, Mortimer had ambitions to pursue history painting. In 1759 the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce began to offer premiums for English (and later British) history painting. Mortimer won second prize in 1763 and in 1764 he won the first prize for St Paul Preaching to the Ancient Britons now in the Guildhall, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. Mortimer continued to explore subjects from British history, completing a remarkable sequence of proto-romantic machines which he exhibited at the Society of Artists, an organisation to which he was devoted. Mortimer was active in setting up the Society's academy of drawing and painting in Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, in 1769. He was made vice-president in 1770 and was president in 1774–5.
In the early 1770s Mortimer turned to more disturbing subject matter, such as scenes of witchcraft, monsters, and, in particular, banditti or bandit scenes, which came to be considered his speciality. Influenced by the etchings of the seventeenth-century artist Salvator Rosa, Mortimer's banditti subjects, often in narrative series, were frequently drawn and etched, either by himself or by engravers such as Robert Blyth, the drawings being exhibited as finished works at the Society of Artists. His most successful graphic project were the twelve drawings he made of heads from Shakespeare and the etchings he published after the drawings.
Thanks to surviving correspondence that Mortimer was keen to etch and publish in a limited edition the drawings himself. For this he enlisted the help of David Garrick. In a letter to Mrs Montagu of 27 March 1775, Garrick wrote:
'the next favour I had to solicit was Your name, which I more Glory in than if Possesd. & to be added to ye. most noble list I have got for a very ingenious Man who has undertaken 6 Etchings from the principal Characters of Shakespeare. I have sent you a Sample of the work, which I must beg you to return to day or tomorrow – without your permission I have plac'd you at the head of my List, & Everybody agrees to the propriety of such a Leader. Should you meet with any choice Spirits, whose names may be easily got, they will not discredit themselves, & do great Service to a most ingenious man.'[1]
This places Mortimer's project importantly at the heart of a major reassessment of Shakespeare's works around 1770. Elizabeth Montagu had published An Essay on the Writings and Genius of Shakespear in 1769. This work was the result of several years of study of both drama and criticism. Full of nationalistic pride, the Essay defended Shakespeare against the attacks of foreign critics such as Voltaire, comparing him with classical Greek and more modern French dramatists, none of whom had all of his virtues. Another particular target was Samuel Johnson, whose Preface to Shakespeare had appeared in 1765. Montagu argued that 'he should have said more or have said nothing' (Clarke, 141); in concentrating on the historical context in which the plays were written and their subsequent treatment by editors and critics, he had failed to engage with the texts of Shakespeare's plays and to use them to argue for Shakespeare's superiority as a dramatist. The Essay sought to remedy what Montagu argued was Johnson's neglect of Shakespeare's 'dramatic genius'. Mortimer had already fired a number of salvos in this debate, in 1765 Mortimer had drawn the frontispiece for Evan Lloyd's satirical poem The Reviewers' Cave which specifically attacked both Samuel Johnson and William Warburton's edition of Shakespeare. In 1776 Mortimer produced a drawing of Literary Characters Assembled around the Medallion of Shakespeare for John Kenyon which again satirised Johnson.
It was in their conception, as John Sunderland observed, that Mortimer's Shakespearean Heads are a quite original contribution to the illustration of Shakespeare in the eighteenth century, being distant from both book illustrations of the period and from theatrical conversation pieces.[2] The drawings do not show contemporary actors en role in Shakespeare's plays, but Mortimer's own conception of the character derived from the text of the play. Thus this penetrating drawing depicts the character of Bardolph, a soldier and thief who appears as a member of Falstaff's retinue in Henry IV parts I and II, The Merry Wives of Windsor and Henry V, famed for his bulbous, red nose. Shakespeare consistently cites Bardolph's physiognomic excesses as evidence of his ferocity, dissolution and questionable moral stance. Prince Hal draws attention to his 'blush'd extempore' adding that his has 'fire and sword on [his] side', Bardolph himself points out that his face compares with 'meteors…[and] exhalations'. Falstaff in several sustained passages continues the fire-related allusions christening Bardolph 'the Knight of the Burning Lamp', whilst another character describes him as an 'arrant malmsey-nose knave.' Mortimer attempts to capture the complexity of Bardolph's character, presenting him as a part dissolute, drink sozzled member of Falstaff's retinue and brave, loyal soldier.
Mortimer's delicate but taut draughtsmanship emphasises Bardolph's bulbous nose, whilst showing Bardolph's dextrous hand clasping his pike. Rendered with a mass of fine lines and hatched shading the drawing very deliberately anticipates the etched lines of the print. The technique is particularly bold and demonstrates Mortimer's awareness of the drawings of seventeenth-century Italian painters such as Guercino and Salvator Rosa. The grotesque quality of Bardolph's features particularly recall the brown ink and wash caricatures by Guercino, several of which were published by Arthur Pond in the 1740s. Guercino was master of using the profile format, derived from antiquity, to add to the comic effect of his grotesque heads, something Mortimer captures in his depiction of Bardolph. Whilst the drawing appears close to the etching, there are a number of significant differences which raises the interesting question of the relationship between the exhibited sheets and the finished plates. The sheet is preserved in exceptional condition and unusually survives on an eighteenth-century mount.
Ed. David Little and George M. Kahrl, The Letters of David Garrick, Oxford, 1963, letter no.900.
John Sunderland, 'John Hamilton Mortimer: His Life and Works', The Walpole Society, 1986, vol.52, pp.76-82.
3 Clifford Street
London W1S 2LF
©2019 Lowell Libson & Jonny Yarker Ltd Website: William Joseph

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
package org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.execution.impl;

import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.Input;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.Pipeline;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.Stage;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.events.AfterPipelineExecutionEvent;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.events.AfterStageExecutionEvent;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.events.BeforePipelineExecutionEvent;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.events.BeforeStageExecutionEvent;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.events.OnErrorPipelineExecutionEvent;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.events.OnErrorStageExecutionEvent;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.events.PipelineEvent;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.execution.PipelineExecutorException;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.execution.PipelineExecutorTask;
import org.guvnor.ala.pipeline.execution.PipelineExecutorTaskDef;
import org.junit.Before;
import org.junit.Test;
import org.junit.runner.RunWith;
import org.mockito.ArgumentCaptor;
import org.mockito.runners.MockitoJUnitRunner;

import static org.junit.Assert.*;
import static org.mockito.Matchers.anyObject;
import static org.mockito.Mockito.*;

@RunWith(MockitoJUnitRunner.class)
public class PipelineExecutorTaskManagerImplEventsTest
        extends PipelineExecutorTaskManagerImplTestBase {

    private PipelineExecutorTaskImpl task;

    private PipelineExecutorTaskManagerImpl.TaskEntry taskEntry;

    private Stage stage;

    private Throwable error;

    protected ArgumentCaptor<PipelineExecutorException> pipelineExecutorExceptionCaptor;

    @Before
    public void setUp() {
        super.setUp();

        error = mock(Throwable.class);
        when(error.getMessage()).thenReturn(ERROR_MESSAGE);
        pipelineExecutorExceptionCaptor = ArgumentCaptor.forClass(PipelineExecutorException.class);

        pipeline = mock(Pipeline.class);
        stages = mockStages(PIPELINE_STAGES_SIZE);
        when(pipeline.getStages()).thenReturn(stages);
        when(pipeline.getName()).thenReturn(PIPELINE_ID);
        when(pipelineRegistry.getPipelineByName(PIPELINE_ID)).thenReturn(pipeline);

        //pick an arbitrary stage for events testing.
        stage = stages.get(0);

        taskDef = mock(PipelineExecutorTaskDef.class);
        input = mock(Input.class);
        when(taskDef.getInput()).thenReturn(input);
        when(taskDef.getPipeline()).thenReturn(PIPELINE_ID);

        task = spy(taskManagerHelper.createTask(taskDef,
                                                TASK_ID));

        taskEntry = mock(PipelineExecutorTaskManagerImpl.TaskEntry.class);
        when(taskEntry.getTask()).thenReturn(task);

        //emulate there's a running task.
        taskManager.currentTasks.put(TASK_ID,
                                     taskEntry);

        taskManager.init();
    }

    @Test
    public void testBeforePipelineExecutionEventForAsyncTask() {
        testBeforePipelineExecutionEvent(true);
    }

    @Test
    public void testBeforePipelineExecutionEventForSyncTask() {
        testBeforePipelineExecutionEvent(false);
    }

    private void testBeforePipelineExecutionEvent(boolean async) {
        when(taskEntry.isAsync()).thenReturn(async);

        BeforePipelineExecutionEvent event = new BeforePipelineExecutionEvent(TASK_ID,
                                                                              pipeline);
        taskManager.localListener.beforePipelineExecution(event);

        verify(task,
               times(1)).setPipelineStatus(PipelineExecutorTask.Status.RUNNING);

        verifyExecutorRegistryUpdated(async);

        verifyExternalListenersNotified(event);
    }

    @Test
    public void testAfterPipelineExecutionEventForAsyncTask() {
        testAfterPipelineExecutionEvent(true);
    }

    @Test
    public void testAfterPipelineExecutionEventForSyncTask() {
        testAfterPipelineExecutionEvent(true);
    }

    private void testAfterPipelineExecutionEvent(boolean async) {
        when(taskEntry.isAsync()).thenReturn(async);

        AfterPipelineExecutionEvent event = new AfterPipelineExecutionEvent(TASK_ID,
                                                                            pipeline);
        taskManager.localListener.afterPipelineExecution(event);

        verify(task,
               times(1)).setPipelineStatus(PipelineExecutorTask.Status.FINISHED);

        verifyExecutorRegistryUpdated(async);

        verifyExternalListenersNotified(event);
    }

    @Test
    public void testBeforeStageExecutionEventForAsyncTask() {
        testBeforeStageExecutionEvent(true);
    }

    @Test
    public void testBeforeStageExecutionEventForSyncTask() {
        testBeforeStageExecutionEvent(false);
    }

    private void testBeforeStageExecutionEvent(boolean async) {
        when(taskEntry.isAsync()).thenReturn(async);

        BeforeStageExecutionEvent event = new BeforeStageExecutionEvent(TASK_ID,
                                                                        pipeline,
                                                                        stage);
        taskManager.localListener.beforeStageExecution(event);

        verify(task,
               times(1)).setStageStatus(stage.getName(),
                                        PipelineExecutorTask.Status.RUNNING);

        verifyExecutorRegistryUpdated(async);

        verifyExternalListenersNotified(event);
    }

    @Test
    public void testOnStageErrorExecutionEventForAsyncTask() {
        testOnStageErrorExecutionEvent(true);
    }

    @Test
    public void testOnStageErrorExecutionEventForSyncTask() {
        testOnStageErrorExecutionEvent(false);
    }

    private void testOnStageErrorExecutionEvent(boolean async) {
        when(taskEntry.isAsync()).thenReturn(async);

        OnErrorStageExecutionEvent event = new OnErrorStageExecutionEvent(TASK_ID,
                                                                          pipeline,
                                                                          stage,
                                                                          error);
        taskManager.localListener.onStageError(event);

        verify(task,
               times(1)).setPipelineStatus(PipelineExecutorTask.Status.ERROR);
        verify(task,
               times(1)).setStageStatus(stage.getName(),
                                        PipelineExecutorTask.Status.ERROR);
        verify(task,
               times(1)).setStageError(eq(stage.getName()),
                                       pipelineExecutorExceptionCaptor.capture());

        assertEqualsException(new PipelineExecutorException(ERROR_MESSAGE,
                                                            error),
                              pipelineExecutorExceptionCaptor.getValue());

        verifyExecutorRegistryUpdated(async);

        verifyExternalListenersNotified(event);
    }

    @Test
    public void testAfterStageExecutionEventForAsyncTask() {
        testAfterStageExecutionEvent(true);
    }

    @Test
    public void testAfterStageExecutionEventForSyncTask() {
        testAfterStageExecutionEvent(false);
    }

    private void testAfterStageExecutionEvent(boolean async) {
        when(taskEntry.isAsync()).thenReturn(async);

        AfterStageExecutionEvent event = new AfterStageExecutionEvent(TASK_ID,
                                                                      pipeline,
                                                                      stage);
        taskManager.localListener.afterStageExecution(event);

        verify(task,
               times(1)).setStageStatus(stage.getName(),
                                        PipelineExecutorTask.Status.FINISHED);

        verifyExecutorRegistryUpdated(async);

        verifyExternalListenersNotified(event);
    }

    @Test
    public void testOnPipelineErrorExecutionEventForAsyncTask() {
        testOnPipelineErrorExecutionEvent(true);
    }

    @Test
    public void testOnPipelineErrorExecutionEventForSyncTask() {
        testOnPipelineErrorExecutionEvent(false);
    }

    private void testOnPipelineErrorExecutionEvent(boolean async) {
        when(taskEntry.isAsync()).thenReturn(async);

        OnErrorPipelineExecutionEvent event = new OnErrorPipelineExecutionEvent(TASK_ID,
                                                                                pipeline,
                                                                                stage,
                                                                                error);
        taskManager.localListener.onPipelineError(event);

        verify(task,
               times(1)).setPipelineStatus(PipelineExecutorTask.Status.ERROR);
        verify(task,
               times(1)).setPipelineError(pipelineExecutorExceptionCaptor.capture());

        assertEqualsException(new PipelineExecutorException(ERROR_MESSAGE,
                                                            error),
                              pipelineExecutorExceptionCaptor.getValue());

        verifyExecutorRegistryUpdated(async);

        verifyExternalListenersNotified(event);
    }

    private void verifyExecutorRegistryUpdated(boolean async) {
        if (async) {
            //verify the pipeline executor registry was properly updated.
            verify(pipelineExecutorRegistry,
                   times(1)).register(pipelineExecutorTraceCaptor.capture());
            assertHasSameInfo(task,
                              pipelineExecutorTraceCaptor.getValue().getTask());
        } else {
            verify(pipelineExecutorRegistry,
                   never()).register(anyObject());
        }
    }

    private void verifyExternalListenersNotified(PipelineEvent event) {
        if (event instanceof BeforePipelineExecutionEvent) {
            externalListeners.forEach(listener -> verify(listener,
                                                         times(1)).beforePipelineExecution((BeforePipelineExecutionEvent) event));
        } else if (event instanceof BeforeStageExecutionEvent) {
            externalListeners.forEach(listener -> verify(listener,
                                                         times(1)).beforeStageExecution((BeforeStageExecutionEvent) event));
        } else if (event instanceof AfterStageExecutionEvent) {
            externalListeners.forEach(listener -> verify(listener,
                                                         times(1)).afterStageExecution((AfterStageExecutionEvent) event));
        } else if (event instanceof AfterPipelineExecutionEvent) {
            externalListeners.forEach(listener -> verify(listener,
                                                         times(1)).afterPipelineExecution((AfterPipelineExecutionEvent) event));
        } else if (event instanceof OnErrorPipelineExecutionEvent) {
            externalListeners.forEach(listener -> verify(listener,
                                                         times(1)).onPipelineError((OnErrorPipelineExecutionEvent) event));
        } else if (event instanceof OnErrorStageExecutionEvent) {
            externalListeners.forEach(listener -> verify(listener,
                                                         times(1)).onStageError((OnErrorStageExecutionEvent) event));
        }
    }

    private void assertEqualsException(PipelineExecutorException expectedValue,
                                       PipelineExecutorException value) {
        assertEquals(expectedValue.getMessage(),
                     value.getMessage());
        assertEquals(expectedValue.getCause(),
                     value.getCause());
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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In addition to supporting our clients during their own internal disruptions, it's also our obligation to ensure our own operations are fully prepared for any disaster. Our organization maintains a comprehensive 6 Step Disaster Recovery Plan. Our plan includes a designated recovery team and a process that restores all business-critical IT and printing functions within 48 hours of a disaster declaration.


The UBC Faculty Association is committed to promoting the interests of UBC Faculty and UBC, upholding principles of academic freedom and freedom from discrimination and harassment. The UBCFA acts as the bargaining agent of all faculty members employed by the University of British Columbia and regulates relations between the faculty members and the University through collective bargaining.
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UBC is committed to supporting the wellbeing of all members of our community. The University recognizes that sexual assault and intimate partner violence are significant issues on our campus and in universities across Canada. For members of our community who have experienced sexual assault, the University is committed to providing compassionate, non-judgemental and respectful support, including access to information and support services, and provision of academic or work-related accommodations and safety planning.
The Office of the Provost and VP Academic established the Vice Presidential Strategic Implementation Committee on Equity and Diversity to enhance UBC's culture of equity and diversity and created the Senior Advisor to the Provost on Women Faculty position to enhance opportunities for women faculty at UBC Vancouver. Dr. Jennifer Love, Senior Advisor to the Provost on Women Faculty works with Faculty Relations and individual faculties and departments to improve and track governance practices in departments, with the goal of improving them to support equity and diversity as well as activities that support university goals. Learn about Faculty Equity + Diversity initiatives on the VP Academic site.


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Duke Energy Postpones Plans for New Fracked Gas Plant in Buncombe County
The plan to build a new fracked gas plant at the Asheville coal plant site at Lake Julian has been postponed by at least four years, according to a Duke Energy Progress filing today with state regulators.Duke's plan to build a "peaker" gas plant that would be used during times of high demand has been pushed back from 2023 to 2027. Duke says the postponement is due to the company's updated resource planning, as well as to the community's push for more clean energy resources.
Duke specifically cited the the efforts of Energy Innovation Task Force (EITF), a group whose members represent Asheville City and Buncombe County Government, local businesses, nonprofits and environmental groups, including Sierra Club. Task force members recommend ways to reduce peak load in the region through demand response, energy efficiency and clean energy solutions.
In response to Duke's filing, Kelly Martin, EITF task force member and associate director of the Sierra Club's Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign, released the following statement:
"It's great news that they're postponing this project, but the better course is not to build this plant at all. Fracked gas has no place in a clean energy future.
"North Carolina ranks second in the nation for solar potential, trailing only California, and we should take full advantage of that resource. Duke should go all in on energy efficiency programs that would lower both demand and customers' bills, and commit to replacing dirty, dangerous fossil fuels with 100 percent clean energy that protects our air, water and communities."
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Works by Greg Loeben
( view other items matching `Greg Loeben`, view all matches )
Greg Loeben [7] Greg S. Loeben [3] Gregory S. Loeben [1] Gregory Loeben [1]
Gregory Scott Loeben [1]
A novel method to enhance informed consent: a prospective and randomised trial of form-based versus electronic assisted informed consent in paediatric endoscopy.Joel A. Friedlander, Greg S. Loeben, Patricia K. Finnegan, Anita E. Puma, Xuemei Zhang, Edwin F. De Zoeten, David A. Piccoli & Petar Mamula - 2011 - Journal of Medical Ethics 37 (4):194-200.details
Next SectionObjectives To evaluate the adequacy of paediatric informed consent and its augmentation by a supplemental computer-based module in paediatric endoscopy. Methods The Consent-20 instrument was developed and piloted on 47 subjects. Subsequently, parents of 101 children undergoing first-time, diagnostic upper endoscopy performed under moderate IV sedation were prospectively and consecutively, blinded, randomised and enrolled into two groups that received either standard form-based informed consent or standard form-based informed consent plus a commercial (Emmi Solutions, Inc, Chicago, Il), sixth grade level, (...) interactive learning module (electronic assisted consent). Anonymously and electronically, the subjects' anxiety (State Trait Anxiety Inventory), satisfaction (Modified Group Health Association of America), number of questions asked, and attainment of informed consent were assessed (Consent-20). Statistics were calculated using t test, paired t test, and Mann Whitney tests. Results The ability to achieve informed consent, as measured by the new instrument, was 10% in the control form-based consent group and 33% in the electronic assisted consent group (p<0.0001). Electronically assisting form-based informed consent did not alter secondary outcome measures of subject satisfaction, anxiety or number of questions asked in a paediatric endoscopy unit. Conclusions This study demonstrates the limitations of form-based informed consent methods for paediatric endoscopy. It also shows that even when necessary information was repeated electronically in a comprehensive and standardised video, informed consent as measured by our instrument was incompletely achieved. The supplemental information did, however, significantly improve understanding in a manner that did not negatively impact workflow, subject anxiety or subject satisfaction. Additional study of informed consent is required. Clinical trial registration number ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT00899392. (shrink)
Biomedical Ethics in Applied Ethics
Informed Consent in Medicine in Applied Ethics
Index of suspicion: Feeling not believing.Benjamin Levi & Greg Loeben - 2004 - Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics 25 (4):277-310.details
Throughout the U.S., state laws require professionals who work with children to report cases of suspected child abuse to child protection services. Both practically and conceptually, however, significant problems arise from a lack of clarity regarding the threshold that has been set for reporting. Specifically, there is no consensus as to what constitutes reasonable suspicion, and little direction for how mandated reporters should gauge their legal and professional responsibilities when they harbor suspicion. In this paper we outline the context of (...) the problem, discuss the nature and scope of its conceptual underpinnings, and offer recommendations for moving towards a concrete, practical solution. (shrink)
The Bioethical Challenge: No Dogs or Philosophers Allowed.Ken Knisely, Greg Loeben, Ronald Munson & Wade Robison - forthcoming - DVD.details
What are the moral stakes involved when we will have the same power to engineer our bodies as we do our automobiles? Which specific bioethics problems will put the most pressure on our ethical traditions? What should we do now to prepare for this brave new world? With Greg Loeben, Ronald Munson, and Wade Robison.
Nancy Berlinger, Ph. D., M. Div., is Deputy Director and Associate for Religious Studies at The Hastings Center, Garrison, New York. Michael A. DeVita, MD, is Associate Professor of Critical Care Medicine and Internal Medicine and Chair of the UPMC Ethics Committee, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. [REVIEW]Barbara J. Evans, Sven Ove Hansson, Steve Heilig, Ana Smith Iltis, Kenneth V. Iserson, Anita F. Khayat, Greg Loeben, Jerry Menikoff & Rebecca D. Pentz - 2004 - Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 13:313-314.details
Courtney S. Campbell, Ph. D., is Professor and Director, Program for Ethics, Science, and the Environment, Department of Philosophy, Oregon State Uni-versity, Corvallis, Oregon. Jean E. Chambers, Ph. D., is Associate Professor in the Philosophy Department of the State University of New York, Oswego. She is currently working on. [REVIEW]John Harris, Bryan Hilliard, Søren Holm, Kenneth V. Iserson, Avery Kolers, Greg Loeben, Peter Montague & John C. Moskop - 2003 - Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 12:329-330.details
Understanding futility: Why trust and disparate impact matter as much as what works.Greg Loeben - 2006 - American Journal of Bioethics 6 (5):38 – 39.details
Trust in Normative Ethics
Bette Anton, MLS, is the Head Librarian of the Optometry Library/Health Sciences Information Service. This library serves the University of California at Berkeley–University of California at San Francisco Joint Medical Program and the University of California at Berkeley School of Optometry. Robert Baker, Ph. D., is Professor of Philosophy and Director of the Center for. [REVIEW]Jack Coulehan, John B. Davis, Joseph C. D'Oronzio, Steve Heilig, D. Micah Hester, Kenneth V. Iserson & Greg Loeben - 2002 - Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 11:327-328.details
Conscientious objection: Does the zero-probability argument work?Greg Loeben & Michelle A. Chui - 2007 - American Journal of Bioethics 7 (6):28 – 30.details
Bette Anton, MLS, is the Head Librarian of the Optometry Library/Health Sciences Information Service. This library serves the University of California at Berkeley–University of California at San Francisco Joint Medical Program and the University of California at Berkeley School of Optometry.Solomon R. Benatar, Susan S. Braithwaite, Alexander Morgan Capron, Ruth Chadwick, Joseph C. D'Oronzio, Susan Dorr Goold, Kenneth V. Iserson, Roger L. Jackson & Greg S. Loeben - 2000 - Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 9:446-447.details
Normative judgments, responsibility and executive function.Gregory Loeben & James D. Stoehr - 2007 - American Journal of Bioethics 7 (1):27 – 29.details
Psychopathy and Responsibility in Philosophy of Cognitive Science
What we should learn about communication from the placebo effect.Gregory S. Loeben & Benjamin S. Wilfond - 1998 - Ethics and Behavior 8 (1):95 – 98.details
Networking Healthcare Ethics Committees: Benefits and Obstacles. [REVIEW]Greg S. Loeben - 1999 - HEC Forum 11 (3):226-232.details


The Wind Ensemble opens the season with a festive musical array inspired by William Makepeace Thackeray's novel Vanity Fair, or Pen and Pencil Sketches of English Society. The concert opens with Percy Fletcher's comedy overture on characters from the novel. What follows are two decidedly non-English gems by Aaron Copland to provide dramatic counterbalance: The Promise of Living from his opera The Tender Land and Variations on a Shaker Melody derived from his ballet Appalachian Spring. Then it's on to the Nebraska premiere of Carter Pann's At Her Ladyship's Request, a rollicking drama in four acts that could easily be the sequel to Thackeray. Pat Dunnigan's brilliant setting of dances from Susato's Danserye of 1551 extends the celebratory mood, and Ira Hearshen's charismatic arrangement of the symphonic dances from Harnick and Bock's Fiddler on the Roof brings the evening to an exhilarating close.
The Wind Ensemble is the university's premiere concert band. Its select mission is to provide instrumentalists of advanced technical proficiency a pre-professional ensemble experience. With an emphasis on 20th century American compositions, the Wind Ensemble's repertoire reflects the most recent technical and textural innovations, as well as the rich tradition of wind and percussion music extending back to the Renaissance.


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Tag Archives: fascism
Fascism: The Career of a Concept Reply
by Keith Preston • Left and Right, Uncategorized • Tags: fascism
Available at Amazon. Reviewed by David Gordon here. Listen to an interview with Dr. Gottfried here.
What does it mean to label someone a fascist? Today, it is equated with denouncing him or her as a Nazi. But as intellectual historian Paul E. Gottfried writes in this provocative yet even-handed study, the term's meaning has evolved over the years. Gottfried examines the semantic twists and turns the term has endured since the 1930s and traces the word's polemical function within the context of present ideological struggles. Like "conservatism," "liberalism," and other words whose meanings have changed with time, "fascism" has been used arbitrarily over the years and now stands for a host of iniquities that progressives, multiculturalists, and libertarians oppose, even if they offer no single, coherent account of the historic evil they condemn.
Certain factors have contributed to the term's imprecise usage, Gottfried writes, including the equation of all fascisms with Nazism and Hitler, as well as the rise of a post-Marxist left that expresses predominantly cultural opposition to bourgeois society and its Christian and/or national components. Those who stand in the way of social change are dismissed as "fascist," he contends, an epithet that is no longer associated with state corporatism and other features of fascism that were once essential but are now widely ignored. Gottfried outlines the specific historical meaning of the term and argues that it should not be used indiscriminately to describe those who hold unpopular opinions. His important study will appeal to political scientists, intellectual historians, and general readers interested in politics and history.
Speaking Heresy: Fascism Wasn't That Bad? 1
Anarcho-Dictator
Instead of a Blog
For an interwar government, the Fascist Italy under Mussolini wasn't too bad – they were pretty mild and not too crazy or controlling. The worst move that Mussolini made was joining up with Hitler, and the second worst was invading Ethiopia – but the USA allied with Stalin and invaded like 50 countries, so big deal.
The Philosophy of Antifa Reply
by Keith Preston • Left and Right, Uncategorized • Tags: antifa, fascism
An Antifa apologist makes his case.
Part 1 – Meet the Antifascists – 0:53 Part 2 – Fascism – 8:18 Part 3 – Violence – 20:47 Part 4 – Free Speech – 39:58 Part 5 – There Is No Peaceful White Nationalism – 53:30
The GOP isn't the party of Reagan. It's the party of Nixon. Reply
by Keith Preston • Electoralism/Democratism, Uncategorized • Tags: donald trump, fascism, Richard Nixon
Anti-Trumpians need to get over the "Trump is a fascist" hysteria. Trump is a neo-Nixonian (which is bad enough) not a neo-Nazi.
By Daniel McCarthy
The Richard Nixon renaissance is upon us. And it's a comeback every bit as remarkable as Nixon's return from the political wilderness to win the White House in 1968.
Late last month, Bob Dole wrote an essay arguing that "Washington could use a man like Nixon again." This week, Pat Buchanan publishes a second memoir of his time with the 37th president, Nixon's White House Wars. But the real Nixon revival isn't in print. It's in the Oval Office.
President Trump is easily the most Nixonian figure to inhabit the White House since Nixon himself. And under Trump, the Republicans are again becoming Nixon's party. Look around you: The long idealized party of Reagan, this is not.
To understand the Republican Party of the last half-century, it's helpful to draw a distinction between what's "conservative" and what's "right-wing." Nixon, like Trump, was right-wing but not conservative — that is, neither of them cared a whit for ideological purity as a matter of principle. Trump, like Nixon, is no believer in small-government dogma. Nixon's opening to China scandalized the conservatives of his time much as Trump's "America First" language shocked the keepers of conservatism's foreign-policy orthodoxy last year.
What is Fascism? 2
by Keith Preston • Left and Right • Tags: fascism, Todd Lewis Praise of Folly
Todd Lewis and Keith Preston discuss the most controversial ideology.
What is Fascism? Reply
by Keith Preston • Left and Right • Tags: antifa, fascism
By Woensdag
National Revolutionary Voice of the Netherlands
On the 23rd of May, 1919 the former revolutionary Marxist Benito Mussolini established the "Fascio di Combattimento" (combat union) with a small group of sympathizers in Italy. Until 1920 it remained a marginal group in the extreme leftwing of the political spectrum. The opportunistic swing to the right, along with the sudden sharp frontal stance against communism and socialism, ensured that the fascist movement got an unexpected strong impulse in the period 1920-1921. After the "red tidal wave" (september 1920), when striking workers in northern Italy started with factory occupations and the establishment of worker soviets, the fascists could count on the warm sympathy and benevolent support from the Italian bourgeoisie.
Within a short period of time, thanks to the support of the liberal bourgeoisie, the state bureaucrats, parts of the army and the Catholic Church fascism got a further influx and became a mass movement in Italy.
"Nothing outside the State, nothing against the State, everything for the State" was the notorious and one hundred times repeated formula of the totalitarian fascist State. The concept of the State is the ideal that fascism persues. It is their highest value, and therefore other important values such as selfcontrol, people and culture were considered by fascism to be secundary, if they recognized it at all. From the perspective of the Italian masses the fascists always stayed the murderers of workers and agents of the hated landlords and factory lords, on which fascism indeed was depended throughout it's lifetime.
Fascism can not be possible without a strong State, which opresses the people and considers workers to be the slaves of the State. Fascism puts the interests of the State before the welbeing of the people. Examples include the Franco-fascism in Spain (1939-1975). Also the Hitlerite variant of National Socialism was similarly constructed in a Statecapitalist way, just as the fascist ideology; it also suppressed its own people, advocated a bourgeois State nationalism and persued imperialist utopias.