text:
Donald Trump didn't create danger of presidential dictatorship, he inherited it
Those who denounce Trump's constitutional depredations and anti-democratic pronouncements are clueless about the real threat.
James Bovard
Opinion columnist
Americans nowadays have a bad attitude towards presidents. Many people are denouncing Donald Trump as a dictator. But the real problem in this nation is the dictatorial illiteracy that has allowed modern presidents to commandeer far too much power.
Trump's saber rattling, rude outbursts and rancorous tweets have spooked folks far and wide. But most Americans are not sufficiently informed on recent history to recognize where Trump poses dire threats beyond the usual Washington machinations. Most citizens are unaware that both political parties have perennially championed bureaucratic aggrandizement over civil liberties.
Many of the experts who have condemned Trump are also clueless about how far federal control has stretched. Yale professor Samuel Moyn and Oxford professor David Priestland recently declared in a New York Times op-ed that "there is no real evidence that Mr. Trump wants to seize power unconstitutionally, and there is no reason to think he could succeed."
But violating the Constitution is practically the job description for modern presidents. It was George W. Bush's White House, not Trump, that asserted a "commander-in-chief override" entitling presidents to ignore the law and the Bill of Rights. Congress utterly failed to thwart that outrageous claim.
More:Hey, guess what? Donald Trump has a good foreign policy idea
More:Trump's Boy Scout speech may have set kids on the right path
Presidents have amassed vast authority because they are judged on their rhetoric and purported goals, not on their constitutional fidelity. Former president Barack Obama's drone assassinations of U.S. citizens were non-issues because observers think he "meant well." When Obama decided to bomb Libya in 2011, his appointees made it clear that he'd ignore the War Powers Act of 1973, enacted to prevent presidents from launching wars on their whim. When a federal judge ruled in May 2016 that the Obama administration's consumer subsidies under the Affordable Care Act violated the Constitution, the decision was almost completely ignored — perhaps because Obama's illegalities were progressive. When President Trump ended the subsidies, he was denounced for trampling congressional prerogatives.
Much of the response to Trump is akin to a novice cable weather reporter who treats each morning's sunrise as a shocking development. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., responded to Trump's media bashing by warning, "That's how dictators get started." By this standard, practically every president since Thomas Jefferson has been a dictator in the making.
Trump is being denounced as a dictator for rescinding Obama's executive decrees. Nothing frightens some Trump opponents more than his withdrawal from the Paris climate accord. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio denounced that decision as "an immoral assault on the public health, safety and security of everyone on this planet." But Obama chose not to submit that agreement for ratification to the Senate. As The Times noted, Obama relied on "bureaucratic bulldozing rather than legislative transparency," issuing nearly 50% more "major regulations" than the Bush administration.
Many Trump opponents are not opposed to dictators per se; they simply want different dictates. Trump was widely denounced because his Justice Department refuses to compel every public school in the nation to make special bathroom and locker room accommodations for self-proclaimed transgender kids. But the Constitution did not grant the federal government jurisdiction over gender identity.
The news media bear much of the blame for Americans' dictatorial illiteracy. None of Trump's actions yet rivals the odiousness of the Military Commissions Act of 2006, which retroactively legalized torture and gutted habeas corpus. There was little uproar at the time thanks to blasé headlines such as this Washington Post gem: "Many rights in U.S. legal system absent in new bill." Whitewashing torture was of no more significance than Congress creating a wool subsidy.
More:Of course, Trumpian hysteria and an eclipse come together: Welcome to our crazy years
POLICING THE USA: A look at race, justice, media
People who are clueless about past oppression are unlikely to effectively resist new abuses. If people never perceived or complained about the power grabs of the prior three presidents, they have scant standing to bewail Trump. This is especially true of top officials in previous administrations who set perilous precedents that Trump could exploit.
Trump, like recent presidents commanding armies of enforcement agents with sweeping prerogatives, is a threat to our rights and liberties. His recent comments endorsing police roughing up arrestees were appalling by any standard. Luckily, Trump's blather cannot negate local, state and federal laws against such abuses. On the other hand, Attorney General Jeff Sessions' campaign to revive the drug war and asset forfeiture poses a far more direct peril.
The sheer amount of punitive power possessed by the federal government is one of the best gauges of potential tyranny. Do we really need 4,000 federal criminal laws and 300,000 regulations with criminal penalties to punish wayward citizens?
As Benjamin Constant wrote in 1815, "It is in fact the degree of force, not its holders, which must be denounced. ... There are weights too heavy for the hand of man."
Unfortunately, many Trump opponents will never make an adverse inference against arbitrary power because they seek to put government itself back on a pedestal.
Trump won the election last year in part because he promised to "make America great again." But America will not be great again until people expect and tolerate far less from presidents. And only illiterates believe that toppling Trump is the only "dictator insurance" that America needs.
James Bovard, author of Public Policy Hooligan, is a member of USA TODAY's Board of Contributors. Follow him on Twitter @JimBovard
You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @USATOpinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To submit a letter, comment or column, check our submission guidelines.


R ratings: There's no R in "fall," but there are plenty of R's at the fall boxoffice.
In fact, R rated movies are driving ticket sales these days. Six of last weekend's top 13 films (46 percent of the total) were rated R, including the number one and two movies — Paramount's horror thriller "Paranormal Activity 4," which opened to $30.2 million, and Warner Bros.' Oscar contender spy thriller "Argo," with about $43.2 million after two weeks.
They were followed by Lionsgate's horror thriller "Sinister," which cost $3 million to make and has grossed about $32 million after two weeks; TriStar Pictures' sci-fi thriller "Looper," with about $57.8 million after four weeks; CBS Films' crime comedy drama "Seven Psychopaths," with about $9.2 million after two weeks; and Open Road Films' crime thriller "End of Watch," with about $37.9 million for five weeks.
Four more R's will hit theatres in wide release over the next two weekends. The first of these, Warner Bros.' sci-fi thriller "Cloud Atlas," opens Friday. Directed by Tom Twyker ("Run Lola Run") and Andy and Lana Wachowski ("The Matrix" franchise), it stars Tom Hanks, Halle Berry and Hugh Grant. It's tracking best with 25-plus males and nearly as well with under-25 males.
"Cloud's" multi-layered story is about individual lives impacting on each other in the past, present and future and how one act of kindness over the course of centuries inspires a revolution.
Oct. 26 will also see the arrival of Open Road Films R rated thriller "Silent Hill: Revelation 3D." Directed by Michael J. Bassett ("Solomon Kane"), it stars Sean Bean, Radha Mitchell and Carrie-Ann Moss. It's tracking best with under-25 males and nearly as well with 25-plus males.
The franchise's original episode, the R rated "Silent Hill," opened via Columbia Pictures Apr. 21, 2006 to $20.2 million and grossed $47 million domestically.
Paramount's R rated drama "Flight" lands in theatres Nov. 2. Directed by Robert Zemeckis ("Forrest Gump"), it stars Denzel Washington, John Goodman and Don Cheadle in a story about a pilot who saves his plane from crashing, but winds up in big trouble in the ensuing investigation. It's tracking best with 25-plus males and nearly as well with 25-plus females.
Also arriving Nov. 2 is Universal's R rated action adventure "The Man With the Iron Fists," from first time feature director and hip hop producer RZA. Starring are Russell Crowe, Cung Lee and Lucy Liu in a tale set in ancient China about warriors hunting for treasure. It's tracking best with under-25 males and nearly as well with 25-plus males.
November will end on an R rated note with two more wide release R's opening Nov. 30. The Weinstein Company's crime thriller "Killing Them Softly" is directed by Andrew Dominik and stars Brad Pitt, Ray Liotta and Richard Jenkins. Pitt plays a professional enforcer investigating a heist during a mob protected poker game.
LD Entertainment's suspense horror thriller "The Collection" is from writer-director Marcus Dunstan and screenwriter Patrick Melton, the writers of the "Saw" franchise's episodes #4, #5, #6 and the 3D #7. Josh Stewart, Emma Fitzpatrick and Christopher McDonald star in this story of a traumatized man forced to help rescue a beautiful woman who's become a crazed killer's obsession.
Looking back at 2012, it's already been a good year for R rated films with five of them grossing over $100 million – Universal's comedy "Ted" ($218.6 million), Columbia, MGM and Relativity Media's action comedy "21 Jump Street" ($138.4 million), Fox's sci-fi horror thriller "Prometheus" ($126.5 million), Universal and Relativity Media's suspense thriller "Safe House" ($126.2 million) and Warner Bros.' comedy "Magic Mike" ($113.7 million).
Bottom line: R ratings keep anyone under-17 from buying a ticket unless accompanied by an adult. But that's not dampening Hollywood's enthusiasm for R rated films, particularly in the low budget horror genre where pushing the envelope can generate very big profits.


Why pizzas if there is something better?
Layers is a boutique bistro situated in Asok focussing on fusion pides & healthy comfort food. We offer creative spin-offs on classic mediterranean dishes and awesome pides with Meatballs, Pesto, Tom Yum Kong and more!
For those with pure food indulgence in mind, come to Layers and sate your desires with our delicious pides and much more. We love food, lots of different food, just like you.
We promise an intimate and relaxed dining experience with great service that ensures you enjoy a memorable food experience every time.


Stillness. Silence. I am alone, yet I know I am not. What goes there in the thicket, are you fur or fowl? I see you not but I feel your eyes following my slightest move. Oh, to know if you fear me or if you are wanting for a friend. The barrier is too great, we will not meet. Just watching.
George Bernard Shaw once said that sometimes photography is too real. I cling to that statement and it drives in me the conflict that eventually led to this change.
Pure photography is the art of story telling. It doesn't lie, it is a documentary of that moment in time. Studio or staged photography tells a story of creation and imagination, but it is still real, a documentation of the staged event.
For me, manipulated digital photography is about dreams, what could be. It brings foreign worlds together, bridges time, and alters reality.
I compare pure photography as non-fiction, basically true with a personal slant. Manipulated digital photography is like fiction. They are different and serve different purposes.
As I spend more of my effort in the fictional world of digital manipulation, I no longer feel this domain name of Jamshots Photography is suitable. My gallery that has long resided at this web address has moved to www.jammckay.com. It includes both fiction and non-fiction.
I have grown attached to this URL and I will continue to support this address with new and experimental ideas.
Change is good. Visit me from time to time. I am pursuing some new ideas and I will try them here first. I will continue to update this site with my latest efforts.
Thanks for your continued encouragement.


Maybe, when it comes to finding a way out of a global crisis of obesity, we're just thinking too small.
Maybe the steps needed to reverse a pandemic of unhealthy weight gain are the same as those needed to solve two other crises of human health: malnutrition and climate change.
So instead of trying to tackle each of these problems individually, public health experts recommend that we lash the three together.
In a treatise published Sunday in the British medical journal Lancet, a multinational commission argues that consumers, business leaders and policymakers must focus their efforts on steps that address at least two of these crises at a time. Only then can they can resolve this trio of emergencies fast and fully enough to make a difference, they wrote.
And no, the experts added: Tackling climate change, world hunger and obesity all at once is not an overreach.
But, the commission warned, it will require an ambitious restructuring of the economic incentives that drive the production and marketing of food. It will require new kinds of transportation systems. And it will demand that consumers demand and help pay for food that is subsidized, raised and distributed in new ways.
Made up of 43 public health experts from 14 countries, the Lancet Commission on Obesity emphasized that the problems of obesity, malnutrition and climate change are inextricably linked by factors such as overconsumption, unchecked marketing and government failures.
If consumers, producers and regulators take those links into account with each choice they make, humans might stand a chance of averting global catastrophe, the experts wrote.
Those common drivers include industries that are not required to pay for the downstream costs their products impose on the health of consumers or the environment, Lobstein said.
• Roughly 2 billion people worldwide are overweight, and despite the costly health risks that come with this trend, no country has succeeded in reversing the fattening of its population.
• Chronic undernourishment afflicts 815 million people in the world, and more than 200 million of the world's children are stunted or wasted by hunger.
• The food production system that allows these trends to continue is a major contributor to climate change, which threatens to exacerbate these nutritional disparities by fueling floods, droughts and wildfires.
"A transformative social movement … is needed to overcome the policy inertia," the commissioners wrote. For that to happen, "a new narrative" is needed, they added.
They called for an international treaty — similar to those addressing tobacco use and climate change — to limit the political influence of agricultural and food production giants. And they recommend the redirection of $5 trillion in government subsidies away from harmful food products and toward sustainable alternatives.
Industries with commercial interests at stake will not yield without the kind of fight that has stymied change for decades, they wrote. Breaking their grip on policy will require funding from philanthropists to empower consumers' demands for products, services and policies that feed the world healthier food produced with more respect for the planet.
But some of the changes needed are already underway, Dietz said: Cities and states are raising taxes on sugary drinks and also aiming to meet goals set by the Paris climate treaty.
The World Resources Institute estimates that consumer demand for food that is healthier and sustainably produced is growing by at least 5% a year, Dietz said.
The Grocery Manufacturers Assn., which represents the nation's leading manufacturers of foods and beverages, responded to the Lancet commission's report with a call for cooperation.
Marlene B. Schwartz, who directs the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at the University of Connecticut, applauded the commission's willingness to look beyond the science of diet and call for broad-based action to change the way food is made and marketed.
Two weeks ago, a related panel called the Lancet EAT Commission outlined global targets for a diet that is both healthy and sustainable. Those commissioners called for most consumers to double their consumption of fruits, nuts, vegetables and legumes, with a massive redistribution of meat consumption. The ideal amount of beef or lamb would be about a half an ounce per day, per person, the commission found — a small fraction of U.S. consumption.
The livestock industry denounced those recommendations as radical, and it challenged the new report as well.
"U.S. farmers and ranchers lead the world in efficient practices that deliver unmatched nutrition and continue to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture to record lows," said Kay Johnson Smith, president and CEO of the Animal Agriculture Alliance.
"The global challenge of feeding the world's growing population and keeping our climate healthy will certainly not be met by excluding farmers' experience and expertise," she said.
Commission member Corinna Hawkes of the University of London insisted "we are not trying to put the food industry out of business. But we want it to exist in a different way," she said. It should be a market in which smaller farmers and food producers can gain a foothold and thrive, she said.
Others weren't so sure that regulating the food industry is the answer to such sprawling challenges.
Cars: The car-dominated transportation systems that support our couch-potato lifestyles not only exacerbate obesity. They generate somewhere between 14% and 25% of the heat-trapping greenhouse gases that are a key cause of climate change. Getting out of our cars and walking to more efficient public transit systems would help solve two problems at once.
Crops: The industrialized food-production system encourages farmers to grow crops like wheat and corn — both because it's most efficient and because government subsidies encourage such specialization. Those are then used to make hyper-processed foods that do more for the bottom line than for our bodies. In addition to generating 25% to 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions, this mode of food production fuels obesity in rich countries like the United States. Meanwhile, in developing countries, there are children who are both obese from taking in too many empty calories and stunted from nutrient deficiencies.
Cattle: Red meat is consumed in unhealthy volumes by those in the industrialized West, and it requires the razing of forests and the mass production of animal feed, two drivers of global warming. Cattle production accounts for more than half of the agricultural sector's contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, and the resulting climate change exacerbates the droughts and extreme weather events that wreck crops and deepen poverty and malnutrition in low-income countries.


In April 2016, millions of documents relating to high-profile political and public figures all over the world were leaked online. The documents, belonging to Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca, allege that some of its clients had hidden money, dodged sanctions and evaded tax in their own countries, using offshore tax and banking structures in the central American country. Mossack Fonseca, which denies any wrongdoing and claims it was hacked, has filed a complaint with the Panamanian attorney general's office adding that the information leaked has been misrepresented.
With 2.6 terrabytes of information revealed – more than 11 million documents, including 4.8 million emails – the leak dwarfed the 2010 Wikileaks by about 1,500 times and inaugurated a new chapter in the history of data breach.
Furthermore, it opened the eyes of the (re)insurance industry to the importance and role of cyber coverage. "The data breach at Mossack Fonseca is the latest in a string of high profile breaches, and must act as a final warning for the insurance industry to up the ante and implement a robust cyber security strategy," says Quostar chief executive Robert Rutherford, whose company specialises in cyber consultancy and information technology.
"Many small- and mid-sized insurers are at a greater risk than the larger firms, as they often view IT security as a box-ticking exercise, as adhering to regulation, rather than a serious matter. This cannot continue," he adds.
All experts agree that the Mossack Fonseca breach must act as a wake-up call, especially for the small- and medium-sized players who, regardless of this, should also start preparing for the cybersecurity regulations that are coming after the EU General Data Protection Regulation was passed recently.


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Democrats Might Create A Tax Break For Union Membership In Budget Bill
PressGrabber August 13, 2021 5 min read
Union members could benefit from a tax break that Democrats are considering as part of their new $3.5 trillion budget plan.
Labor groups are pushing lawmakers to include a provision that would allow workers to deduct the cost of union dues from their taxable income. Such a tax break could defray the cost of union membership and, the thinking goes, encourage more workers to join unions.
Senators are considering the idea, according to a Democratic aide.
One union source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said organized labor groups have urged Democrats to make the tax benefit an "above the line" deduction with the IRS. That means workers would be able to take advantage of it regardless of whether they itemize their tax deductions or take the standard deduction.
Lawmakers are also considering the possibility of creating a tax credit for union dues, which, unlike a deduction, would reduce a filer's tax liability dollar for dollar. Bloomberg Law was the first to report on discussions of a union dues tax break.
Senate Democrats passed an initial budget outline this week that would allow them to pass a final bill later this year using the special "budget reconciliation" process, which requires a simple majority vote instead of the usual 60 to break a filibuster.
Democrats view the bill as possibly their final chance to enact major changes for years and are considering a wide range of policies. They've offered only a broad outline of major elements of the bill, including "pro-worker incentives and worker support."
A deduction for union dues could be a modest way to encourage union membership through the tax code.
If such a break came to fruition, the policy would improve on a tax deduction that union members had until Republicans killed it in 2017.
Workers used to be able to deduct union dues, but they could only do so if they had enough other eligible deductions that it was worthwhile to file an "itemized" tax return ― and even then, the eligible expenses had to amount to more than 2% of the tax filer's adjusted gross income.
Republicans eliminated the break on union dues when they did away with an entire category of miscellaneous deductions. It was one of several changes Republicans made in their effort to simplify the individual tax code as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which slashed corporate taxes. The most important simplification for individuals was a much bigger "standard deduction" that has resulted in far fewer households filing itemized returns.
That's one reason why Democrats are considering union dues as an "above the line" deduction, which allows taxpayers to subtract certain things — such as up to $250 for teachers' classroom expenses — above the line on tax form 1040 where filers report their adjusted gross income.
Alexandra Thornton, senior director of tax policy at the left-leaning Center for American Progress, told HuffPost that an above-the-line deduction for union dues would bring more tax parity between workers and businesses. Employers, she noted, can already deduct the expenses they incur bargaining with and even resisting unions, since it's considered a cost of doing business.
If the same logic applied to workers, union dues would be deducted from the worker's earnings for tax purposes.
"When you think about the union and what it does for workers, they're basically negotiating salary and benefits. So it's a cost of getting your income if you're a worker," said Thornton, who outlined a proposal for the above-the-line deduction in a 2019 paper.
She called making union dues tax deductible "a fairness thing."
Bill Clark via Getty Images
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, has been one of the biggest boosters for labor law reform.
Thornton said the deduction would also be a small way to encourage union membership through tax policy. Union density in the U.S. has declined for decades, with just 10.8% of workers now belonging to a union. That's roughly half the rate in 1983, when the government first started tracking. (Most HuffPost employees are represented by a union, the Writers Guild of America-East.)
The cost of dues varies from one union to the next; they often fall between 1% and 2% of a worker's gross wages. How much a worker saved through an above-the-line tax break would of course depend on how much they paid in dues and which tax bracket they fell in. For a worker earning $60,000, the savings could translate into a couple of hundred bucks a year, thereby lowering the effective cost of being represented by a union.
Unions are pushing Congress to implement sweeping changes to labor law to encourage more unionization through the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, or PRO Act.
Because the legislation doesn't have the necessary votes to overcome a Senate filibuster, Democrats are considering trying to implement parts of it through budget reconciliation ― in particular, a provision that would create monetary fines against employers that violate labor laws. One of the biggest boosters of the PRO Act is Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee and a lead crafter of the budget bill.
The union dues tax deduction proposal is not part of the PRO Act, but some lawmakers have been pursuing it separately. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Bob Casey (D-Pa.) Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) sponsored a standalone version of the union dues deduction earlier this year.
In a statement to HuffPost, Brown's office said his first priority for workers would be to pass the PRO Act in its entirety, but suggested he's open to other options.
"Senator Brown will never give up fighting for the PRO Act," a spokesperson said. "But, when an opportunity to pass pro-worker policies comes along, you go as big as you can."
News syndicated from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/democrats-union-members-tax-break-budget_n_6116696ae4b0454ed70cdf77
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Q: Java generic type argument in consumer interface In the main method in the below class there is the usage of the below method: input.
However this will result in a compilation error as in the usage below, the field amount which is wrapped inside the consumer is instance of an Object and not a generic type that can be molded into an int.
Therefore to resolve the compile error we would need to cast (int) to amount then using ok((int)amount);
public class Constructor {

public static void main(String.... args) {
    input("reason", (amount) -> {
        int amount2 = amount; //also error as amount is Object and not int
        ok(amount); //error as amount is Object and not int
    });
}

public static void ok(int i){ //paramter i MUST BE INTEGER

}

public static <T> void input(String reason, Consumer<T> answer){

}
}

I want to be able to freely use the amount value in the consumer as an int/string/list
Heres an example of how I want to free utilize the amount field:
usage:
ok(attribute("key"); //this will work and is freely moldable into int/string/whatever

code:
public <T> T attribute(String key){ //This will return whatever you want it to, and is how I want the amount field to do inside the consumer
    return aHashMap.get(key);
}

A: The proximal issue here is that the Java compiler has no basis on which to infer the type parameter T of method input().  You can solve that by using any of several ways of expressing it explicitly.  For example,
 <Integer>input("reason", (amount) -> {
    int amount2 = amount; //also error as amount is Object and not int
    ok(amount); //error as amount is Object and not int
 });

or
Consumer<Integer> intConsumer = (amount) -> {
    int amount2 = amount; //also error as amount is Object and not int
    ok(amount); //error as amount is Object and not int
};

input("reason", intConsumer);

On the other hand, it's not clear what value you gain from using a generic method there.  An alternative would be to declare it differently:
public static void input(String reason, Consumer<Integer> answer){
    // ...
}

If you don't want input() to specify the Consumer's type parameter, then maybe instead you want
public static void input(String reason, Consumer<?> answer){
    // ...
}

, though that in itself does not help Java infer the Consumer's type parameter where that method is invoked.

I want to be able to freely use the amount value in the consumer as an int/string/list

That doesn't make sense as stated.  The existence of a local variable amount in the Consumer's implementation is a detail of that implementation.  An implementation that uses the argument in any way that is not general to all Objects is therefore limited to use with a subset of types.  Since String, List, and Integer have no common superclass more specific than Object, no such consumer could handle all three types.  You could have a different Consumer implementation for each of those types, but then there is no meaningful sense of the amount common to those consumers.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Is there an archive of all the GP2X/Wiz/Caanoo BGD-runtimes?
Re:Is there an archive of all the GP2X/Wiz/Caanoo BGD-runtimes?
Yes, there is an official Wiz release of BennuGD in the main page, fully working without needs of GINGE.
But for GP2X, there are two unofficial releases made by me of an old version (but stable and fully working): one for official firmware, and another for Open2X firm. Also is possible they works on Wiz without GINGE. They are on internet, but I can't remember where I uploaded them ^^U (I think they are on openhandhelds web).
If you are still interested, I can upload again here or elsewhere. Just let me know.


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HC at FSU
Taylor Swift Performed "Lover" and "False God" on SNL
By Tatum Swanson • FSU Contributor • Entertainment October 8, 2019 at 10:00am
Taylor Swift dazzled the Saturday Night Live (SNL) stage on Oct. 5 by performing renditions of "Lover" and "False God" from her most recent album Lover. During the show, she was joined by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who recently won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series at the 2019 Primetime Emmy Awards for her work in Fleabag. During their promotional ads together, the women made playful jokes about the British-infused script supposedly written by Waller-Bridge.
Image Courtesy of ET Online
During her visit with Jimmy Fallon at The Tonight Showearlier in the week, Fallon asked Swift what songs she would be performing on SNL. In traditional Taylor Swift fashion, she said, "You know we got to be a little cryptic because it's fun." According to Paper Magazine, she revealed that she would be performing "Lover" in a way that she has never done before, as well as a song that she has never performed live. Fans took to the Internet to try to decipher her clues but still ended up completely unsuspecting of her selections.
Swift began the night with a moving performance of "Lover", wearing an ensemble that was very reminiscent of 1980s fashion, complete with acrylic hoop earrings and various shades of green. She played an illuminated piano throughout the entirety of the song, with music sheets suspended from the air around her as she sang. Performing without any background singers or additional instruments, Swift tweeted that "[she] had the best time playing Lover on @nbcsnl exactly the way [she] wrote it, on [a] piano in a quiet moment." This beautifully simplistic solo version of the track was the first time Swift had performed it in such a fashion, just as she had said, which excited viewers nationwide.
Courtesy: Slate
Towards the end of the show, the second half of her puzzling hint was revealed. "False God" was performed with a sexy and smooth tone — just like it's lyrics. Swift came out wearing a black embellished pantsuit, setting the mood with airy movements and gestures (yes, her signature reach into the crowd was one of them).
The cozy design of the set was more elaborate than the first, containing dozens of Edison bulbs lighting up the stage as saxophone player Lenny Pickett played alongside Swift's vocals. Fans were especially pleased with this song choice because she had not performed "False God" yet, making Twitter fans everywhere go berserk. Taylor Nation, a fan account for the musician, tweeted saxophone emojis and retweeted multiple fans exclaiming their love over the song selection. Last Saturday, #TaylorOnSNL became a top trending topic on Twitter in the US.
Courtesy: Stereogum
After the show, paparazzi spotted Swift with boyfriend Joe Alwyn leaving for the SNL afterparty. Fans couldn't help but notice the large glimmering ring on Swift's right hand. Although it was on the wrong hand, this led to multiple engagement rumors to resurface.
Courtesy: Yahoo Entertainment
When her album Lover was first released, fans noticed multiple references to weddings and marriage throughout the album, leading fans to believe that the couple is engaged, or possibly even married. Because of their extremely private relationship, this could be a wild assumption from the Swifties — or, it could be another one of Swift's cryptic messages.
Want to see more HCFSU? Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest!
Tatum Swanson (FSU '21)
Tatum is a Junior Editing, Writing and Media student at Florida State University. When she's not writing for Her Campus FSU, she's probably playing with dogs, scrolling through Instagram, or drinking an iced coffee.
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To help in planning for next year please see this working calendar that is updated as soon as we have dates and festival information.
As we have been offering in our odd year summer class schedule, I hope that you might consider taking MUED 5814M AdvancedConducting which is a five-day workshop for band, orchestra, and choral conductors who teach at the middle school and secondary level, at the collegiate level, and for undergraduate and graduate college students, that is designed to deal with conducting techniques, rehearsal strategies, and score study.
MUED 5814M: Advanced Conducting Class will be held on the YSU Campus from June 10-14, 2019 from 9:00 AM-4:00 PM. Historically, this class has had between 9 and 12 students with a mixture of regional music educators/conductors and upper division undergraduate and graduate students from the Dana School of Music. For graduate students it falls in the category of "Seminar" towards your degree.
YSU Dana School of Music will be offering MUED 5814M Advanced Conducting is a course/workshop from June 10-14, 2019 in Bliss Hall. The class will be taught by Dr. Stephen L. Gage and it is a 2 semester hour course. The class will run from 9:00 A.M.-12 Noon and 1-4 P.M.


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Attack of the Gryphon – Review
Director: Andrew Prowse
Starring: Jonathan LaPaglia, Larry Drake, Amber Benson
Final Score: 7/10
After 300 years, the war between Lockland and Delphi is about to come to an end. In a desperate attempt to turn defeat into victory, the King of Lockland orders the court sorcerer to unleash its ancient protector – the Gryphon – upon the invading armies of Delphi. The wily wizard, however, has other plans, and uses the Gryphon's supernatural powers to become supreme ruler of both kingdoms. Uniting against their common foe, Lockland's Princess Amelia and Delphi's Prince Seth set out in search of the legendary Draconian Pike, the only weapon that can destroy the Gryphon and end the sorcerer's evil reign.
You cannot go wrong with a quest for a magical weapon. It's the ultimate fantasy story, and Attack of the Gryphon pulls it off quite well. Of course, magic plays a part in the story, but they don't let it take over. Magic is used in a supporting role to even the playing field. Sacrifices are made throughout that makes the ending feel earned.
Although we don't get to sit down with the characters that much during the film, each of them are shown in a way that we can see their personalities. There are a few character changes that come a little abruptly to fit the story and they feel a little forced. This doesn't take away how lively each character is. There is an energy to these characters.
Score: .5/1
This film is another victim of instant romance. Amelia leads the party for half the film, with no interest in Seth, when suddenly, boom: sex. They try to pass it off as her trying to get information, but it swiftly grows into love. We get to see Seth show interest in Amelia earlier in the film, but we never see the relationship from Amelia's side, so it just feels sudden. Seth's parents on the other hand are shown to have a solid relationship based on trust. Orin is the king, but he loves Cassandra and listens to her advice, even when it hurts him.
There are a few lines that fell short during the film, but for the most part the dialogue is epic. Some may find it overly dramatic, but it fits the tone of the film. It is supposed to be a fantasy and it need lines like that. The sorcerer probably has the cheesiest lines in the movie.
Very little action is person versus person. The main antagonist is the Gryphon, so the main battles are the Gryphon sweeping in for the kill. Those scenes are not the best. The scenes are usually very close to the action and is used to hide the low army count and the low budget effects. The actual sword fights are good, what little we see of the them. They also have close shots throughout. The gryphon was supposed to be very powerful, so soldiers kept running from it, but anytime someone stood up to it, they managed to hurt it. It leaves you asking why they can't kill it quickly.
The music is all you can ask for. It supports each scene and never forces its way into the film.
From the castles, to the forests, to the tunnels, every location felt old and mystical. The designs are full fantasy. It gives the world an ancient feel as the company journeys across it.
The costumes in the film are great, the Lockland armor especially. There are only a few points that missed the mark. Amelia wears her armor for half the film before it disappears. It's never explained and just feels wrong. Seth's armor also feels off. With the great designs of everyone else's costumes, they decided to go with sleeveless studded black armor for him. He looks like he's in the wrong film.
The Gryphon is terrible. If you wanted to watch it for a majestic creature out of myth, don't. Even for people who can suspend their disbelief, the Gryphon will still be hard to watch. The magic is great compared to it. Magic is used throughout, and is okay most of the time. A few of the more active uses are noticeably fake though.
The whole film just felt right. All the elements fit together to create an epic story. The drawbacks may throw some people off, but it's just a plain fun fantasy. It is not a full-scale epic, with massive armies clashing, but we get scenes with armies facing off against a gryphon while people fight over a magical pike. What's not to like?


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2019 Event Guide
26 June: Conference Agenda Day 1
Big Data Industry News
#bigdatafordefence
Hilton London Olympia , London, United Kingdom
Download the Event Guide l Big Data for Defence Summit
Participate at the only big data conference designed specifically for the defence sector. U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Danish Defence Intelligence Service, UK Ministry of Defence, Directorate General of Armaments, French Ministry of Defence, NATO and th ...
How leveraging new technologies will ensure military network safety: Insights from Brigadier General Buckner
In this exclusive interview with a key speaker of this year's Big Data for Defence conference, Brigadier General Jennifer Buckner, Department of the Army, Deputy of Army Military Operations for Cyber, U.S. Army, gain insights into the role of new technologies in enhancing cybersecurity of the US Army Cyber Command.Download...
Past presentation: The Future of Big Data Analytics in Defence
Delivered during last year's Big Data For Defence Conference, this presentation from Dr. Adam Zagorecki, Senior Research Follow, Operational Analysis, Cranfield University lays out the the future of big data analytics in defence. Download this presentation to learn more about:How AI and machine learning will develop over the next 10...
Big Data for Defence: 2019 trends report
The potential applications of big data, AI and other emerging technologies in the defence sector are vast. There is an increased focus on these technologies by nations from across the world, which is stressing the importance of developing, implementing and applying them in their Armed Forces. Ahead of this year's...
NSA leaks forces defence sector to confront big data future
It is perhaps no revelation to say that, when compared to the private sector, governments have been largely slow to engage with the big data movement. There is of course an undeniable need for them to come down from the wings and play catch up, and while some public bodies...
The Future is Cloudy - Opportunities & Technological Challenges in Developing the 'Combat Cloud'
This e-book explains the changing combat doctrines in the US military, prioritising data inflows over purely platforms leading up to the Combat Cloud concept. Also exploring the cyber security vulnerabilities to cloud technology and consequences in military applications and discussing the most recent program developments in US forces and globally...
Why Big Data is Vital in Modernising Defence - Insights From Sir Gordon Messenger
Big data is a key word currently in the defence sector. Whether in logistics, warfighting or within the different processes in between, the potential applications and its potential is vast. Ahead of the inaugural Big Data for Defence summit, Defence IQ had the privilege to have five minutes with General...
Embracing the future: Defence industry in the digital age
Airbus Defence and Space is no stranger to digital transformation, having implemented such a programme last September. As the lead sponsor of the upcoming Big Data for Defence conference, the company is ideal to discuss what the digital age means for defence industry. In this exclusive transcript of Defence IQ's...
Redefining the future of defence through AI
Artificial Intelligence offers a vast potential to the defence sector and could possibly re-write the way militaries operate entirely in all domains, from logistics to the operational theatre. Ahead of the Big Data Analytics for Defence summit, Defence IQ had the opportunity to gain expert insight from Ross Tsagalidis, Department...
Download the Event Guide l Big Data for Defence Summit:
Participate at the only big data conference designed specifically for the defence sector. U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Danish Defence Intelligence Service, UK Ministry of Defence, Directorate General of Armaments, French Ministry of Defence, NATO and the British Army have confirmed their participation. The Big Data for Defence...


Wallpaper Removal – What were they Thinking?
Wallpaper Removal Techniques – If you have ever had the pleasure of trying to remove wallpaper, I can almost promise you would have had that thought at some point during your struggle. When you think of wallpaper, most of us conjure up images of terrible floral patterns with even worse colour schemes that most of our parents homes in Hamilton and Burlington area were completely covered with. Not to mention, the pain staking agony it takes to remove that stubborn stuff in order to make those walls look presentable again.
Whether you are staging your home for resale, or just purchased a "fixer-upper" and you have wallpaper in your home here's what you need to know to make that stuff a thing of the past. First off, you need to determine the number of layers of wallpaper on your walls. Sometimes there is a not so welcome surprise after you have taken off the first layer of the wallpaper! In that case maybe it will be better to contact one of your local wallpaper removal contractors!
Once you get the first layer of paper off, you will find a brown or yellow looking paper layer that has the glue on the back that is what is holding the pattern to the wall. You will want to soak this and let it sit as much as possible. Using a steamer for wallpaper removal can be a great deal of help as well which really helps the glue to release its hold on the wall. If you are skilled enough, you would be able to remove the wallpaper in large sections from floor to ceiling. This, however is not easy to do. Most people will find that the wallpaper rips and tears and comes off in tiny little pieces, which makes for a long and tedious project. Carter Painting can help you for any project related to Wallpaper Removal in Hamilton and Burlington.
After you have removed all of the wallpaper from drywall, you will have to go through the entire surface of all the walls and ensure you haven't missed any spots like in the corners and up high close to the ceilings. When you can no longer see any visible signs of paper, you should be ready to paint now right? Wrong! You still need to clean all of the glue off of the walls completely before and painting can begin. This is a critical step in the process that will return poor quality results if not executed properly.
Because the wallpaper glue is a water-based product, it reacts with the latex paint when not fully removed and causes a really nasty chemical reaction. It is imperative that when removing wallpaper, all of the walls in the affected areas are cleaned thoroughly to avoid this unsightly problem. After the walls are cleaned, the next step is to seal them with an oil based or alkyd primer. It is very important not to use a latex or water based primer at this stage of the game as if you have not fully removed all of the glue residue, you will experience the chemical reaction and your walls will look brutal.
Wow, sounds like a lot of work, doesn't it? Well, in truth it really is, but if you have the time to dedicate to this project and the patience to not rush the preparation, it is a job that most people can do themselves. Once you have completed the application of the oil primer on all your walls, you are now ready to give them a good sanding and start plastering all the drywall dings and dents. This can be minimal or substantial depending on the condition of your walls before the wallpaper was applied, and the methods you used to remove the previous wall covering. Using a putty knife or scraper to remove wallpaper for an inexperienced person can cause significant damage to the drywall underneath.
If you were gentle, you may not have too much patching to do, otherwise you may have to skim coat the walls in order to repair most of the damage. After you plaster and sand the walls again, you are ready to prime all the repaired areas. After cleaning up all of the drywall dust and wallpaper debris you are finally ready to apply some new colour to those walls. Two coats of your favourite colour and you're on your way. We recommend using Sherwin William's Opulence Matte for the best overall durability and appearance.
Removing old wallpaper and re-painting a room can be a very rewarding experience. There is a great sense of gratification that comes from doing it yourself. There is no substitute for hard work, and patience on a job like this, but if you are determined to do a great job, nothing can stand in your way. I hope you have found this post helpful, now get out there and make something beautiful!
Get your Free Wallpaper Removal Quote Estimate Now!
if you don't have time to remove your wallpaper anytime soon – why not give Carter Painting Hamilton a call? We'll help you out! Give Carter Painting a call today at 905-581-0999 or simply fill the fee quote request from to receive your free consultation and some modern interior painting ideas, and also a free cost estimate for your wallpaper removal project.


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DIBLA DESIGN AWARDS 2020: THE CAPABILITIES OF THE NEW FORMAT AND ITS BENEFITS IN A CHALLENGING YEAR
Each hardship hides a number of opportunities, like the new concept of DIBLA DESIGN AWARDS 2020 borne because of the COVID-19 situation
The competition traditionally demonstrates the development and successes of interior design in Bulgaria. In 2021, it will be dramatically different, and even more exciting: all interested viewers will be able to watch for free the award ceremony on 21 January, at 6.30pm on www.dibla-awards.com.
Interior designers and investors can apply for the competition until the end of 2020, and a renowned international jury will consider their projects in early January. DIBLA DESIGN AWARDS provides a prestigious scene for the best professionals in the field, allowing them to present to eager viewers their successes and their beautiful projects.
DIBLA DESIGN AWARDS has established itself as the most prominent event in Bulgarian interior design sector, and the expectations are that its 2021 edition will be the most viewed one. The splendid event will be impressive as ever, and its realisation online will allow a broader audience.
Nominated participants in each category will be featured on www.dibla-awards.com, together with the winners in the past five years. The evening's main accents will be the awarding of winners and the runners-up in the separate categories. The awarded designers will participate in the ceremony in real time.
Traditionally, DIBLA DESIGN AWARDS will culminate with the presentation of the most prestigious award: Designer of the Year. Winning it is a privilege that only the best professionals in Bulgaria enjoy and is an internationally recognised sign for quality.
The practically unlimited audience of the redefined DIBLA DESIGN AWARDS provides unprecedented opportunities to designers and businesses. The Dibla team spent months of hard work to create its visual environment, concept creation, to shoot and edit videos. Selected companies for innovative and modern solutions, technologies, services and products will be presented in Bulgaria's first digital expo. With the help of VR all interested guests could visit the stands of participating companies and could download for free useful materials, along with Dibla team's professional selection.
DIBLA DESIGN AWARDS 2020 will stay online for a year. Free access to the digital expo and video of the award ceremony and the channels for popularisation guarantee an unprecedented scale of the future event. The potential audience is expected to reach hundreds of thousands.
Our goal is high-quality service and professional support for our clients, COMMISSION FREE.
We met with its creators, Borislav and Kristina Karakolevi, to learn why their firm is a reliable partner to any business that seeks stable and secure growth.
The COVID-19 pandemic was a wakeup call in many ways. The importance of our health was one of them. This is why having good insurance health coverage is a must for Bulgarians in the country and travelling abroad, and for visiting foreigners.
Founded in 2018 in Sofia, Studio HORA is an award winning practice and research tribune that represents the collaborative work of architects Andrey Hodkevich and Vladimir Raynovski.
Just 5-6 drops from the astonishing Blodeu rejuvenating oil applied on cleaned face in the morning and the evening, followed by a 1-2 minute massage!
For a year now, humanity has looked with hope to pharmaceutical companies.
After 16 years of experience in pharmaceutics and cosmetics and many trips to Asia and Africa where she learned a lot about local cosmetic products and ingredients, Stanislava Pavlova realised that she... has forgotten to take care of her own skin.
Alternative types of urban transportation are all the vogue nowadays, but Vinghen, a Bulgarian brand created by Tsvetan Iliev, stands out.
The professional approach, combined with an honest opinion and consulting, forms the basis of the services we offer.
Each cream, lotion, perfume is developed with attention to detail and with aim at excellent performance. This makes Hristina Cosmetics products the perfect gift to the people you love.
Expecting a child has always been a time of excitement for the future parents, but the Covid-19 pandemic made this precious period in one's life more stressful. What should a pregnant woman do in such a situation?
In his work he elegantly overcomes not only aesthetic, but also functional and practical challenges. We talked with him about his professional philosophy and his latest projects, interiors А16 and LT11.


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MEET MURPH
The ASU Years
BREWERS BASEBALL
Sandlot Baseball
Murph42
Remembering Rick Majerus
Posted in News on 21. Mar, 2013
Saint Louis will take the NCAA Tournament floor on Thursday as they have all season with blue and white ribbons on their jerseys and the word "Coach" just above their hearts.
It's a symbolic and poignant reminder of the late Rick Majerus, who died December 1 due to heart complications. Where the Billikens go, their Coach goes.
In another state and another sport, one of Majerus's friends, Tucson Padres' manager Pat Murphy will soon follow suit. He plans to add the Coach's initials to a tattoo on his back (among other influential people in his life including Pat Tillman, Bruce Springsteen and his parents).
"The first time I ever heard about Rick Majerus, he was the coach at Marquette," says Murphy. "The story came out about him living at the hotel, there was some crassness to his statements and I said to myself, 'I gotta meet this guy. I think I'd really like him.'"
They didn't cross paths until 2006 when Majerus was considered the leading candidate to become Arizona State University's head basketball coach. Majerus wanted to learn more about ASU and reached Murphy through mutual acquaintance Mike McBride.
"Funny story: the first time I ever met him, he said 'Hey! Who's your all time starting 5? You got Russell or Chamberlain?' Since that phone call, we were friends. After 20 minutes, it was like I'd known him all my life."
Majerus did not get the ASU job (reportedly ASU did not offer because of his uncertain health condition) but the friendship between two brash and highly successful college coaches blossomed. They met up in Long Beach and later in Majerus's hometown of Milwaukee. Murphy introduced him to Craig Counsell.
Murphy and Majerus with friends
"There's few times in your life you can say, 'My friendship with him was not only special but I feel grateful to have ever met him,'" says Murphy. "He just had a stark influence on you because he was the epitome of a coach, about being passionate about his job. When I think of him I think of passion and I think what a good friend means. In my dictionary of life, Rick Majerus's picture would be next to it."
Majerus later served as a Murphy mentor after he was fired from ASU in November 2009.
"When everything went down, he was one of the first people to reach out and say "Hey! Whatever you need,'" says Murphy.
"I was supposed to go there and sit on the bench at the Kansas game. He said, 'You're a coach.' He made me realize these types of things happen, it doesn't matter if it's fair or not, doesn't matter if you got the raw end of the deal. He said, 'If that's the case, so what? Do what you do best. Don't lose your edge about helping young people. There's a reason this happened, just pave your way in a new area.'"
Murphy bristles at the notion that he was one of Majerus's closest friends.
"I've probably met 15 people that knew him," says Murphy. "How could he have that much time for all his friends? He had to have thousands of people in his life. He was just special to all of them. No tolerance for uppity people that were caught up in their title or arrogance. He was just a humble, blue collar, gym rat ball coach."
After leading them to their first NCAA tournament berth in 12 years in 2012, Saint Louis announced in November Majerus would not return to the bench this season because of ongoing health issues. Just a few weeks later, the Coach who famously had just one losing season in 25 years passed away in a Los Angeles hospital.
"The day he passed I probably walked for three hours," said Murphy. "The people in my neighborhood probably thought I was losing it. I talked to him for three hours."
"The last time I talked to him I knew it was serious but I honestly thought he'd come out of it. The more and more it went on, you couldn't talk to him. That was sad part; I couldn't say goodbye to him. He was very private. It was just the way he wanted it."
Today Murphy smiles when he remembers the good times (like the time his daughter Keli held a spot for him in line at Phoenix's famous Pizzeria Bianco and then insisted she dine with him) and their short but influential relationship.
"You know what was amazing is I hadn't realized how much I bragged about him about what a tremendous person he was and how much concern he showed me. The day he died I bet you I got 50 text messages saying, 'So sorry about Rick.'"
"Everybody wants to leave a legacy and you know because you're in their lives in a leadership position you know you're going to leave some kind of influence, but Rick was just a great example of friendship, of passion and of being a coach. I will never lose that closeness and memory and that example."
"He was as real as it gets."
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I've been working for several weeks on my second book in my first lesbian romance series. (I can't wait to officially announce my debut novel! It's with my editor at the moment.) But this narrative hasn't been like the first, which seemed to come to me all at once like I was channeling some long forgotten tale. This second book has dropped into my head in bits and pieces: random conversations, glimpses of scenes, feelings.
For the last couple of weeks I've also had this unsettling notion that all of what I've written is crap. If I'm feeling bored with it and I'm the one in control of the story, then there's definitely a problem. I was talking with a friend of mine about it and mentioned that I had written myself into a corner. More accurately, I wrote myself into a ditch, some sad rut that I haven't been able to steer out of.
This story I've been laboring over is bogged down because it got off track. Somewhere after chapter two I took a side road to nowhere. But all is not lost, because what I realized is that this story is actually part of book four in the series. Or book four is part of this book… At any rate the two storylines fit together like puzzle pieces filling in the dead spaces in both. I don't know why I didn't see it before. I think I was lost in a maze of my own creation. Not only that, when scenes and words become too precious to be reconsidered, or edited, or cut, then you may be your worst enemy.
Make strong coffee. Deconstruct. Amend. Revise. Rewrite.
Suddenly it all makes sense. The story has life again, and it's a full one.
This goes out to my fellow writers… Has this ever happened to you?
Yep, and you're exactly right. It usually means I've tried to make the story go a way that is not organic or tried to make the characters do something that doesn't feel right…and they refuse. I fall back on the old police adage: improvise, adapt, and overcome. Works every time. Good advice. Can't wait to read your work!
Currently, I'm writing one book in a three to four book series. But each of the book pieces comes to me at random, and so, for the first year of writing this book, I kept trying to fit all the pieces into the first one.
(After the first 40 chapters were done) But it didn't work until I relaxed and let it be all the different books getting written at once.
(This did mean, when my flow of thought hit, it was easiest to dump it all into the computer rather than using my typewriter for each piece, because then I had more flexibility of… Movement and transformation.) Now…this process is much slower going, as I sit down and do the hour by hour work, but not the chipping away hour by hour work of writing just one book.
The characters will just jump into the things out of nowhere and expect me to catch up.
So, long answer to a short question….I have this happen. 🙂 added self doubt seems to be a bigger aspect as well, since for me, there's not an easy "end in sight".
I personally like to see at least a hazy mirage at the end of the trek.
I also drive myself crazy writing several stories at once… putting them down as they come to me.


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273 posts categorized "New plays"
Review: The Son, Kiln Theatre - gripping drama with a heartbreaking inevitability
The signs are glaring, a figurative and literal Chekhov's gun, it's a car crash in slow motion and you can't look away.
There is a heartbreaking inevitability to Florian Zeller's play The Son which is currently on at the Kiln Theatre.
Nicolas (Laurie Kynaston), a once bubbly teenager has become withdrawn since his parent's divorce. He lies, skips school and his behaviour has started to frighten his mother Anne (Amanda Abbington).
Moving in with his father Pierre (John Light) and new wife Sofia (Amaka Okafor), it is hoped, will return him to his old self.
Denial or ignorance?
Anne talks about Nicolas being ill, his father believes it is 'a phase' but whether through denial, fear of stigma or ignorance neither addresses what is obviously wrong with their son.
Continue reading "Review: The Son, Kiln Theatre - gripping drama with a heartbreaking inevitability" »
Posted on 26/02/2019 at 08:20 PM in New plays, Off West End | Permalink | Comments (0)
Review: When We Have Sufficiently Tortured Each Other, National Theatre - 'you must be wondering what the hell is going on?'
Despite committed performances by Blanchett and Dillane, there is something cold and mechanical to what is going on.
Cate Blanchett is clever casting for Martin Crimp's new play When We Have Sufficiently Tortured Each Other at the National Theatre because without her I very much doubt it would have sold out before it opened.
I'm putting my hand up and admit it was her casting that persuaded me to buy tickets, it certainly wasn't the fact that the play is written by Martin Crimp - the last of his I saw I tried to fall asleep to escape the boredom.
But even the thrill of seeing the Oscar/Golden Globe/BAFTA winner on the stage couldn't elevate what was a tedious two hours at the theatre.
Continue reading "Review: When We Have Sufficiently Tortured Each Other, National Theatre - 'you must be wondering what the hell is going on?'" »
Posted on 09/02/2019 at 11:24 AM in Menier Chocolate Factory, National Theatre, New plays | Permalink | Comments (0)
Review: Cost of Living, Hampstead Theatre - refreshingly bold and honest
Cost of Living is a refreshingly bold play, it presents disability in a matter of fact way focusing on relationships while challenging inhibitions
Martyna Majok's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Cost of Living focuses on two carers and the people they care for.
Eddie (Adrian Lester) is looking after his soon to be ex-wife Ani (Katy Sullivan) who is quadriplegic after a terrible accident and Jess (Emily Barber) has just been employed to help PhD student John (Jack Hunter) who has cerebral palsy.
While Ani and John are totally reliant on their carers for physical assistance, Eddie and Jess are equally needy in their own way.
We are first introduced to Eddie who is in a bar, buying the barman drinks as penance when he gets gloomy about a recent bereavement.
Nuanced performance
Majok doesn't always give Eddie the words to explain his thoughts but it is all there in Lester's nuanced performance.
It is a gripping opening but the play stumbles a little as it moves into its middle section.
Continue reading "Review: Cost of Living, Hampstead Theatre - refreshingly bold and honest" »
Vault Festival review: Kompromat, a gripping, sexy, spy thriller
The performances ooze with sexual tension and sensuousness; the backdrop is an atmosphere of isolation and threat and it is this combination which elevates Kompromat above your average spy thriller.
Guy Warren-Thomas and Max Rinehart in Kompromat. VAULT Festival. Photo: Mark Senior
The 2010 'spy in the bag' murder is the inspiration behind Kompromat, a new play by David Thame which imagines the murderer using a honey trap to ensnare his victim.
A two-hander, the story is told through a series of monologues and flashbacks primarily through the eyes of Zac (Max Rinehart) who picks up Tom (Guy Warren-Thomas) at a club.
Continue reading "Vault Festival review: Kompromat, a gripping, sexy, spy thriller" »
Posted on 25/01/2019 at 11:30 PM in Fringe/pub theatre, New plays | Permalink | Comments (0)
Interview: Peter Darney talks 5 Guys Chillin' success and directing the 'dangerous' and 'sexy' play Kompromat
"Theatre should challenge, should open your eyes to the nooks and crannies of life you wouldn't see otherwise."
Peter Darney studied drama at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and has acting, writing and directing credits to his name including the international fringe hit 5 Guys Chillin'.
He is currently directing gay crime thriller Kompromat by David Thame, which was inspired by the 2010 'spy in the bag' murders and opens at the Vault Festival next week.
Here he talks about what has made him a more empathetic director, how theatre should challenge and why Kompromat is a must-see.
Writer/director Peter Darney. Photo by Oscar Blustin
You wrote while you were at drama school, subsequently studied directing and then took up writing again how do the disciplines compare?
I made a living from acting for six years and it's quite blissful because I feel like I've come full circle.
I think what I always wanted to be was a writer and I am now really exploring that again but I'm bringing the knowledge I learnt from being an actor, knowing that I have to be able to motivate any line of dialogue.
And from being a director, having an understanding of structure and the bigger picture of what works and what doesn't; what's going to be impossible to stage, what's going to be cheap to stage and then taking all of that back into my writing.
Does it make you a better director?
A good boss can always do your job and everybody else's, so I think [it's good] understanding the three disciplines.
You know what it feels like to stand there as an actor and get crushed by a director and I would hope it stops me from crushing an actor.
Similarly, knowing what it feels like to have a director say 'oh no this is rubbish'... having empathy for each role I hope helps me work a little more holistically and with kindness.
What are you most proud of so far?
The thing I'm most proud of is a play that I wrote and directed called 5 Guys Chillin' which is a verbatim drama about the chemsex epidemic.
It played in London for about six months, did two Edinburgh festivals, played Sydney and Toronto and it's opening in a French translation in Paris this month.
Continue reading "Interview: Peter Darney talks 5 Guys Chillin' success and directing the 'dangerous' and 'sexy' play Kompromat" »
Review: Rosenbaum's Rescue, Park Theatre - finding truth in competing narratives
A Bodin Saphir's play, directed by Kate Fahy, is an engaging look at the nature of truth and whether it is merely a matter of perspective or personal belief.
David Bamber & Neil McCaul (L-R) in Rosenbaum's Rescue at Park Theatre. Photo by Mark Douet.
Set in 2001, Rosenbaum's Rescue at Park Theatre examines the circumstances surrounding the safe exodus of thousands of Jews in Denmark during the Second World War.
A tip-off and the absence of Nazi ships meant that in 1943, 7,500 Jews were able to flee to Sweden on fishing boats.
Abraham (David Bamber) and Lars (Neil McCaul) were both 8-years old at the time and have very different views about what happened and its significance but the truth might just fracture an already prickly friendship.
Continue reading "Review: Rosenbaum's Rescue, Park Theatre - finding truth in competing narratives" »
Happy New Theatre Year: 9 plays I'm particularly looking forward to seeing in 2019
Starting off 2019 with plenty of theatre in the diary, these are the nine plays I'm particularly looking forward to seeing (in date order):
Kompromat, Vault Festival (23-27 Jan)
What the website says: Inspired by the still-unsolved 2010 murder of GCHQ agent Gareth Williams, Kompromat is a tense drama of double agents and our capacity for self-deception played out against a high-stakes game of love.
Why I'm excited: Having read an early draft a couple of years ago and then attended a rehearsed reading at the Arcola I've got a good feel for what this might be like.
Tartuffe, National Theatre (9 Feb-30 Apr)
What the website says: A scalpel-sharp comedy looking at the lengths we go to find meaning – and what happens when we find chaos instead.
Why I'm excited: Tartuffe is one of the classics I've long wanted to see, John Donnelly has done the adaptation and Olivia Williams is in it. I love Olivia Williams.
Jesus Hopped The 'A' Train, Young Vic (14 Feb-30 Mar)
What the website says: From Pulitzer Prize winner Stephen Adly Guirgis (The Motherfucker with the Hat), comes this critically-acclaimed dark comedy about the American justice system and the contradictory nature of faith.
Why I'm excited: I loved The Motherfucker With the Hat when I saw it in 2015 at the National and I've been waiting for another Stephen Adly Guirgis play to hit London ever since.
Continue reading "Happy New Theatre Year: 9 plays I'm particularly looking forward to seeing in 2019" »
Posted on 03/01/2019 at 11:00 PM in Barbican, Coming soon, Fringe/pub theatre, Lists, New plays, Old Vic, Theatre thoughts, West End, Young Vic | Permalink | Comments (0)
2018 theatre review: My favourite plays of the year (and my first six star play)
So I've published my favourite fringe plays list and my least favourite plays list, time now for my best plays of 2018 overall, gleaned from everything I've seen - large productions and small, commercial theatres, subsidised and fringe:
Misty, Trafalgar Studios
A play which put the pulse back into the West End and as a result was a breath of fresh air.
A Monster Calls, Old Vic
I was nervous about seeing a stage adaptation of a much-loved book but the creativity with which it was staged combined with the performances meant I was an emotional wreck by the end. So much of an emotional wreck, I had to walk around for a bit afterwards to compose myself.
Queens of Sheba, Underbelly, Edinburgh Fringe
A play about the dual prejudice of sexism and racism encountered by black women that succeeded in being both angry, uplifting and empowering.
It left me feeling teary in a happy/sad/exhilarated way and ready to march if the call came.
There is another chance to see it at the New Diorama Theatre, Jan 30-Feb 3 as part of the Vault Festival.
Notes from the Field, Royal Court
It was an uncomfortable, seat-squirming, horrifying joy to sit and experience and I gave it an unprecedented six stars. Yes, six stars.
Continue reading "2018 theatre review: My favourite plays of the year (and my first six star play)" »
Posted on 29/12/2018 at 10:12 AM in Almeida, Bridge Theatre, Coming soon, Donmar Warehouse, Edinburgh Fringe, Feminist theatre, Fringe/pub theatre, Lists, National Theatre, New plays, Off West End, Old Vic, Royal Court, Shakespeare, West End | Permalink | Comments (0)
2018 theatre review: My 10 favourite fringe plays
2018 was my first year at the Edinburgh Fringe which produced a bumper crop of excellent plays (look out for transfer details) but London has delivered some gems too.
Out of the 50-odd fringe plays there are 10 that really stand out but what strikes me most when revisiting them is how many evoked such a strong emotional reaction.
Yes, some are on the list for being highly entertaining but others made me feel angry or empowered or rebellious, some even a bit teary.
The other thing that strikes me is their diversity in ethnicity and gender balance tipped away from male dominance but I'll be writing more about that in another post.
So, in no particular order:
1. The Claim, Shoreditch Town Hall
Based on research into Home Office procedures this exposes the farcical system that asylum-seekers encounter but more than that, how incompetence endangers people's lives. It made me very angry.
2. My Mum's A Twat, Royal Court Upstairs
It's been an incredible year for Patsy Ferran, kicked off in fine style with this solo performance in a play about a girl's relationship with her mother who has joined a cult. Funny and spirited it also had dark edges.
3. Coconut, Ovalhouse
An effervescent love story and a coming of age story that challenged stereotypes.
4. Flesh and Bone, Soho Theatre upstairs
Shakespeare-esque lyricism combined with East End vernacular cleverly takes you on a revealing and entertaining journey that elevates the stories of those that often overlooked. Shakespeare would, no doubt, have approved.
Continue reading "2018 theatre review: My 10 favourite fringe plays " »
Posted on 26/12/2018 at 05:40 PM in Edinburgh Fringe, Feminist theatre, Fringe/pub theatre, Lists, National Theatre, New plays, Royal Court, Soho theatre | Permalink | Comments (0)
Review: Sweat, Donmar Warehouse - Globalism, the American Dream and human drama in Lynn Nottage's superb play
There is slow growing tension and tense personal drama in Sweat but it is also inconspicuously provocative.
Seven years ago, playwright Lynn Nottage started spending time in Reading, Pennsylvania, one of the poorest towns in America and wrote Sweat based on her experiences there.
Set among a group of factory workers, what you get is in many ways a classic drama of friendship, jealousy and tragedy born out of a moment of madness.
But globalisation and immigration beat at the heart of this story as, when the workers' way of life is threatened by layoffs, they are pitted against each other and big business.
Job for life ideology
This is a community brought up on the idea that a factory job is a job for life, where the reward for decades of hard, physical work is a good pension.
It is also a community where union cards are the key to the lucrative factory jobs but they are like elusive golden tickets if you aren't local or the right sort of local.
Two families form the centre of the narrative. Cynthia (Clare Perkins) works at the factory and her son Chris (Osy Ikhile) works there too but has longer-term plans to go to college.
Cynthia works with her friend Tracey (Martha Plimpton) and Tracey's son Jason (Patrick Gibson) who is happy to have his factory job and his life mapped out.
Friendships challenged
Tensions in their friendship first appear when there is an opportunity to apply for a promotion - the first person to make it off the factory floor into a management position.
Continue reading "Review: Sweat, Donmar Warehouse - Globalism, the American Dream and human drama in Lynn Nottage's superb play" »
Posted on 15/12/2018 at 11:34 AM in Donmar Warehouse, New plays | Permalink | Comments (0)


text:
For the seventh consecutive season, the Lindsey Wilson volleyball team will open its conference slate on the road as the Blue Raiders venture to Lebanon, Tennessee to take on Cumberland University on Thursday evening before continuing south to Pulaski to meet the University of Tennessee Southern on Saturday.
The start of league-play could be just what the locals need after recently completing a demanding non-conference schedule. Since 2011, Lindsey Wilson is 150-14 against Mid-South foes during the regular season, including a combined 29 wins and one loss against their opponents this weekend.
Cumberland enters Thursday's contest with seven wins in its first nine matches for the second-straight season and is led by freshman standout Hazel Konkel. The Phoenix middle hitter has been a consistent presence at the net with 73 kills and the third-most solo blocks in the NAIA (20). She is flanked by the junior duo of Harlee Kate Reid and Lauren Galvan, who leads the team with 81 and 74 successful attacks, respectively.
The Firehawks of Tennessee Southern are winless in their last seven matches but have had to go through the likes of second-ranked Midland University (NB), No. 6 Jamestown (SD), and No. 16 College of Saint Mary just to get to their conference opener, which is set for Wednesday versus Campbellsville.
Senior Brianna Turner and sophomores Hannah Oliver and Laura Howell each rank fourth among league athletes in their respective statistical categories - Turner with 132 kills, Oliver with 145 digs, and Howell with 294 assists - to make up a balanced Firehawk lineup. As a team, Tennessee Southern has served up the 20th-most aces in the nation (79).
Speaking of solid serving, the Blue Raiders are rolling off of a three-set sweep of Brescia University, in which they posted 13 aces. The win against the Bearcats also snapped a five-game skid for the locals, putting them back on the winning track.
Elizabeth Moore is an attacker to keep an eye on for Lindsey Wilson. The second-year outside hitter has a 0.219 hitting percentage over her last three outings, including double-digits in kills in two of those instances. Meanwhile, freshman Monika Szwarc turned in a personal-best 22 assists in her first-career start as the Blue Raiders' setter on Friday.
Golf: LWC Women lead Blue Raider Invite after opening rounds
Soccer: LWC women look to bounce back at home opener
LWC Golf to open season at Blue Raider Invite
LWC Football set for season opener against St. Andrews
LWC Volleyball sweeps Point and Tennessee Wesleyan
LWC Volleyball splits matches at Vette City Classic


Diane Zych wrote a very beautiful poem that she is willing to share with our readers. She was blessed with a 50 year marriage and lost her sweet and loving husband this past year.
from the moment of his birth.
and toasting the sinuous sun.
in celebration of the day that is done.
and rejoice in the miracle of life.
I shall be sobered by Death's summoning fife.
Thank you for sharing these meaningful words.


pallavi sharda was born on 3/5/1988- in Perth , Australia . So now she is 29 years old (as in 2017). Hema Sharda is mother name and Nalin Kant Sharda her father name. Her father and mother Nationality Australia , Now she is a professional Australian-Indian actress and dancer in Australia . her original home city Perth , Australia . Her main Profession is Australian-Indian actress and dancer . Right now pallavi sharda is a famous Australian-Indian actress and dancer in the world. and her Nationality is Australia.
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text:
Q: Propositional Equivalence Proof I need some help getting to the next step of a problem I have been working on for about 2 hours now and can't solve. I would like to prove the following compound proposition:
$(\neg q \wedge (p \vee p)) \rightarrow \neg q \equiv T$
So far I have not gotten past:
$(\neg q \wedge p) \rightarrow \neg q\\
\neg(\neg q \wedge p) \vee \neg q\\
(q \vee \neg p) \vee \neg q\\$
From here I'm not quite sure what law to apply. I know I need to get the left side to probably be something like $q \vee \neg q \equiv T$ so I can apply the Complement Law.
As suggested I tried $q \vee \neg q \vee \neg p\\ T \vee \neg p\\$
But then I don't know what to do with the left over p.
Here are the laws that I am using

A: Let r be $(\neg q \wedge (p \vee p)) \rightarrow \neg q.$
Clearly r is true.  Thus T -> r.  As T is true, r -> T.
Both of those use the axiom p -> (q -> p).

A: Better to set up a truth table.
We know $p|p = p$
So $(!q \& (p | p)) = !q \& p$
p q  !q     !q & p  (!q & p) -> !q ≡ T
0 0   1        0          0  ->  1 = 1
0 1   0        0          0  ->  0 = 1
1 0   1        1          1  ->  1 = 1
1 1   0        0          0  ->  0 = 1


text:
United Way Perth Huron gets access to new funding program
Megan Partridge - Director of Governance and Community Impact, United Way Perth Huron (Photo courtesy of United Way Perth Huron)
United Way Perth Huron has partnered with the Canadian Red Cross and Community Foundations of Canada to access funding from the Community Services Recovery Fund.
The fund is a new $400 million investment from the Government of Canada to support charities and non-profits as they build resilience by making investments in their people, organizations, and program innovation.
United Way Director of Governance & Community Impact Megan Partridge says the funds are dedicated to a specific cause.
"These funds the government has put aside for helping to support recovery in all communities across Canada in the charitable and not for profit sectors to help modernize and adapt coming out of COVID or coming through COVID," Partridge said.
Partridge adds the funding is really helping the organizations and the charities.
"This funding is really helping the organizations and the charities to be able to push forward beyond COVID and help modernize things that we maybe wouldn't have access to dollars for. So really thrilled to be able to pull these dollars into Perth and Huron," added Partridge.
Applications for the funding will be available starting on January 6 and will be available until February 21, 2023. Partridge notes, more information about the funding will be available after January 6 in the new year and organizations that want more information now can go to the http://www.communityservicesrecoveryfund.ca web site.


text:
<?php
namespace Merchant\Form;

use Zend\Form\Form;
use Zend\InputFilter\InputFilter;
use Zend\InputFilter\Input;

class SettingForm extends Form
{

    function __construct()
    {
        parent::__construct('merchant_setting');

        $this->add(array(
            'name' => 'alipay_account',
            'type' => 'Text',
        ));

        $this->add(array(
            'name' => 'bank_type',
            'type' => 'Text',
        ));

        $this->add(array(
            'name' => 'bank_account_name',
            'type' => 'Text',
        ));

        $this->add(array(
            'name' => 'bank_account_card',
            'type' => 'Text',
        ));

        $this->add(array(
            'name' => 'submit',
            'type' => 'Submit',
        ));

        /**
         * Setting up inputFilter
         */
        $input_AlipayAccount = new Input('alipay_account');
        $input_AlipayAccount->setRequired(false);
        $input_AlipayAccount->getValidatorChain()->attach( new \Zend\Validator\StringLength(array('max' => 50)) );
        $input_AlipayAccount->getValidatorChain()->attach( new \Zend\Validator\EmailAddress() );

        $input_BankType = new Input('bank_type');
        $input_BankType->setRequired(false);
        $input_BankType->getValidatorChain()->attach( new \Zend\Validator\StringLength(array('max' => 50)) );

        $input_BankAccountName = new Input('bank_account_name');
        $input_BankAccountName->setRequired(false);
        $input_BankAccountName->getValidatorChain()->attach( new \Zend\Validator\StringLength(array('max' => 50)) );

        $input_BankAccountCard = new Input('bank_account_card');
        $input_BankAccountCard->setRequired(false);
        $input_BankAccountCard->getValidatorChain()->attach( new \Zend\Validator\StringLength(array('max' => 50)) );
        $input_BankAccountCard->getValidatorChain()->attach( new \Zend\Validator\Digits() );

        $input_filter = new InputFilter();
        $input_filter->add($input_AlipayAccount);
        $input_filter->add($input_BankType);
        $input_filter->add($input_BankAccountName);
        $input_filter->add($input_BankAccountCard);

        $this->setInputFilter($input_filter);

    }
}

?>

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


In the transformer, the primary winding is in direct contact with the secondary winding. On the printed circuit board, the creepage and clearance distances between the primary and secondary circuits are too short. The product does not comply with the requirements of the Low Voltage Directive and the relevant European standard EN 60950.