text:
Texpatriate
Founded in a Boston dormroom
by Noah M. Horwitz
Don't let the door hit you!
Editorial note: Noah M. Horwitz is not currently employed or contracting with any entities designating a conflict of interest on this topic.
The Houston Chronicle reports that Lyft, the popular taxi service based off of an app, will be ending its services in Houston just days before new laws go into effect regulating its operation. Since February, Lyft has operated illegally in Houston; however, Mayor Annise Parker's administration tolerated the lawbreaking because she was sympathetic to their proposed changes to the vehicle-for-hire industry, along with those of their chief rival, Uber. In August, the City Council approved regulations largely accommodating Uber and Lyft into the marketplace. Technically, Lyft is still operating illegally, since the new rules do not go into effect until next week.
One of the provisions in the new law is that drivers for these so-called Transportation Network Companies (TNCs), such as Uber and Lyft, can abstain from city-mandated background checks (ones that involve fingerprinting) for up to 30 days. This was done at the behest of Lyft lobbyists, as Uber doesn't have a problem with these fingerprinting background checks. Now, Lyft is threatening to leave Houston unless the meager background provision is eviscerated entirely.
Lyft claims they do their own background checks, and that they are superior. Of course, from a municipal regulator's point of view, I don't see how secret checks could be evaluated or trusted; we are a little old to use the honor system for something like this. And given that Uber has no problem with the fingerprint background checks, it is obvious that this business model can sustain these types of checks.
Supporters of Lyft showed up en masse at City Hall today and attempted to lobby the City Council into relaxing the rules. Miya Shay, a reporter for KTRK, tweeted a picture of them loitering in the hallway. Personally, if there are people who are this vehement in opposing fingerprint background checks, they honestly freak me out a little bit.
From what I have heard, City Councilmembers are somewhat unenthusiastic about changing the rules, with some of them even pestered by this whole idea. Given how hard they fought over the rules this summer, I doubt many representatives — or the Mayor, for that matter — want to revisit this divisive issue. Additionally, even most of the tribalistic supporters of TNCs could probably not care less about this issue. If Uber is the favorite son of the new entrants into vehicles-for-hire, Lyft is the red-headed stepchild.
You know my overall opinion on TNCs, but I would hope that everyone could be behind background checks that include fingerprints. The risks are just too high otherwise. For the safety of everyone, the Council should stand firm on this issue.
Standard | | Tagged Annise Parker, Houston City Council, Lyft, Miya Shay	| 1 Comment
Subpoenas droppped
Yesterday, Mayor Annise Parker finally agreed the drop the controversial subpoenas issued against clergy for supposed comments made regarding the recent Non-discrimination ordinance. I talked up this issue somewhat thoroughly a couple weeks ago when the subpoenas were first issued, so I do not think I will get into weeds of all that again.
First, the Parker administration narrowed the scope of the subpoenas to explicitly make the point that they wished to only cover topics directly related to the petition effort against the NDO, not any broad topics on the underlying issues. Still receiving derision from across the country, Parker and City Attorney David Feldman relented and dropped the subpoenas. However, as the Houston Chronicle noted today, religious and conservative leaders are still up in arms about the actions.
Litigators and others with some familiarity between the city and those religious leaders bringing suit against the city (please see previous post for more on that) will know that these subpoenas are fairly routine parts of the discovery process in a lawsuit. However, the ultra-religious, ironically those preaching hellfire and damnation against some others most obstreperously, are remarkably gifted at feigning outrage and phony persecution. If you ever dare to suggest that Churches stop impeding upon the state, they scream persecution and "War on Christmas" and all that hyperbolic silliness. Nick Anderson, the Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist at the Chronicle, illustrated this very point better than I could write on it.
But, separate from what is legally correct, this whole issue was politically wrong. Actually, that's an understatement, it was a political atrocity. Parker succeeded in awakening the angry conservative masses that had finally subsided following the "Summer of HERO." She succeeded even in bringing attention to this delicate issue from all across the country. And the annoying way that the issue was fumbled led even left-of-center outlets to react skeptically to this whole production.
Make no mistake, a referendum will still probably be held on this ordinance. When that day comes, because of the Parker administration's trigger-happy maneuvering, the contest to save the NDO will be even more uphill. National Republican groups will pour in money against the ordinance. And negative campaigns against Democrats have already started by dredging up this issue.
I am still a steadfast supporter of this ordinance, which is what makes seeing this boondoggle unfold is all the more troubling. The most vociferous opponents against the NDO engage in slimy tactics; the proponents, particularly those in City Hall, should not sink to that level.
Standard | | Tagged Annise Parker, David Feldman, Non-discrimination ordinance	| 0 comments
Abbott's strange doublespeak
Yesterday, Attorney General Greg Abbott, the Republican candidate for Governor, released a new 30-second commercial on border security. Ordinarily, this would not be much for news, but a tidbit within the ad caught my attention. Overall, the ad is a garden variety conservative attack on President Barack Obama for apparently not doing enough to manage immigration into this country, while bemoaning the supposed influx of Mexican cartels into this country. I don't want to really get into the weeds of all that, because it is a very different issues that drew ire from me.
Around the 12-second mark, the ad claims that Abbott would double the budget of the Department of Public Safety. This doesn't sound that unreasonable, especially considering most of the DPS' functions involve things like highway patrol and motor vehicle bureaus. The only problem is that the DPS is largely funded out of the State Highway Fund. Since the DPS obviously is different from a highway, the moneys it receives from the fund are considered diversions. And Abbott, in a commercial last month, pledged the end diversions from the fund.
All this begs the question of how Abbott would pay for his projects. Obviously, he — like everyone else in the Republican Party — is pathologically opposed to raising taxes. And yet, drastically expanding money for transportation, public safety and the border, he is proposing a fairly significantly upping of the state's expenditures. And yet, with no plan to pay for it. I suppose that Abbott could just slash a little more from schools, but at this point he's writing cheques the State just cannot cash.
Abbott wants to have his cake and eat it too. Sadly, I have not found anyone else around the state that has honed in an this strange doublespeak. The state media has completely abdicated its responsibility to call out bad candidate plans. State Senator Wendy Davis (D-Tarrant County), the Democratic candidate for Governor, rightly received immense derision for her outlandish education plan, which likewise lacked a sensible pricetag. It's only fair that Abbott should be subjected the same.
On another note, I find it strange that Abbott would be wading into this divisive of an issue, especially without attacking Davis by name. The jab at Obama appeared a little misplaced, especially considering his last Obama-centric ad went well out of its way to connect Davis to him.
Standard | | Tagged Barack Obama, Greg Abbott, Immigration Reform, Transportation funding, Wendy Davis	| 0 comments
Don't vote straight ticket, don't be stupid
Even though more than half of early voting has already gone by, newspapers are still fielding endorsements for statewide elections. Most of the big newspapers supported State Senator Wendy Davis (D-Tarrant County), the Democratic candidate for Governor, such as the Houston Chronicle, San Antonio Express-News, Austin American-Statesman, Corpus Christi Caller-Times and the El Paso Times. The major exceptions, those who supported Attorney General Greg Abbott, the Republican candidate for Governor, were the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and The Dallas Morning News, as well as a plethora of small-town papers.
For some of the downballot contests, no such diversity existed. The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal was the only paper, of any size, I could find that supported State Senator Dan Patrick (R-Harris County), the Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor. And I found not a single paper that supported either State Senators Ken Paxton (R-Collin County) or Glenn Hegar (R-Harris County), the Republican nominees for Attorney General and Comptroller, respectively. Not one.
Needless to say, there aren't any good reasons to vote for these men. I suppose, if you truly believe in conservative principles, there is a legitimate point to be made in not wanting to support the Democrats, but it is just inexcusable to support these stains upon the GOP ticket. Patrick is a demagogue in the style of Huey Long, though he is considerably less intelligent and less opaque in his nefarious intentions. Paxton is a lousy attorney and likely could be convicted of a felony in the coming months. Hegar openly admits he has no idea what he would do in office as the State's top financial watchdog.
Not to appear too eager in criticizing the Republicans, Democrats have an exceedingly terrible candidate on their statewide slate too. Actually, many of my compatriots tend to think that David Alameel, the nominee for the Senate, fits that description, but I'm talking about Jim Hogan, the Democratic candidate for Agriculture Commissioner.
I've opined previously on my myriad objections with Hogan — he's a no-name, no-campaigning political novice who is smug in his complacency and total ignorance of state issues. He has some experience as a farmer, which is great, but he knows nothing of school lunch programs, regulating gas pumps or the multitude of other issues that the commissioner must oversee. Here's the entire article back from July about why I would never vote for Hogan.
Not a single organization I am aware of has endorsed Hogan. All the newspapers or other non-partisan organizations have supported former State Representative Sid Miller (R-Erath County), the Republican, while even the big Democrat groups have suggested undervoting. A few other blogs, namely Brains & Eggs, Jobsanger and Socratic Gadfly, have supported Kenneth Kendrick, the Green nominee, as did this publication.
If you are an otherwise reliable Democratic voter, I have previously made the argument in the past that Kendrick is the only reasonable choice. Unlike many within the Green Party, his political views aren't to the left of Marx; rather, they are somewhere around the median of what I figure a Texas Democrat would be. But still, some Democrats loathe supporting the Green Party out of principle. For those of you who fit that description, just undervote, but please do not vote for the Democrat.
Unfortunately, my words will fall on deaf ears for most. Admittedly, the absurdly long ballot makes intelligent voting rather difficult. But at least for the statewide races, don't be afraid to split your ticket. Texas elected some mix of statewide Democrats and Republicans for about 30 years between the 1960s and 1990s. The 1998 and 2002 elections, even though they were GOP sweeps, featured a serious range in how close the challengers got.
In 1998, for example, some Republicans won by 31 points while others won by only 2. In 2002, the range was anywhere from 32 point victory margins to 5 point ones. Fastforwarding to 2010, the range shrunk to only a few points between the high water mark and the low one. The direct cause is straight ticket voting, but the indirect cause is that Texans have gotten less politically astute in the preceding two decades.
At the beginning of this century, people all over the state could subscribe to any number of newspapers. Those in the rural areas had the ability to do so, and those in the suburbs had the will-power to do so. But then the newspapers cut back causing talk radio and Fox News to fill the void. More importantly, Barack Obama, the most divisive President in recent history, came to power and caused a fierce nativist backlash, fueled by racial animosity, known as the Tea Party. Democrats fired back in kind, and solidified themselves into their own camp as well.
Now, most Texans just get their news from the monitors at gas stations and Instagram. We think of ourselves as belonging to a political party in the same respect as rooting for a football team, and that is the extent of the rational discussion of the issues, if one is even among the 29% of Texans who aren't too lazy to vote.
Newspapers, blogs, NPR and a couple of other serious sources promote serious debates on the policies, but this is drowned out in the cacophony of partisan chest-bumping. Think of the scenes from Animal Farm when Snowball and the other well-intentioned pigs attempt to make serious policy decisions, but are drowned out by the sheep bleating "FOUR LEGS GOOD, TWO LEGS BAD." That is basically what straight ticket voting does. Don't be a sheep, don't be dumb. Actually scrutinize your ballot.
Standard | | Tagged 2014 Election, Barack Obama, Dan Patrick, David Alameel, Glenn Hegar, Greg Abbott, Jim Hogan, Ken Paxton, Kenneth Kendrick, Sid Miller, Wendy Davis	| 2 Comments
Reality Check, Part V
First and foremost, a poll was released by The Texas Tribune today that appears to place the final nail in the Democrats' coffin. Now, as I have opined time and time again in the past, I'm not really a fan of the Tribune's polling, so take this with a grain of salt. But with Attorney General Greg Abbott, the Republican candidate for Governor, leading State Senator Wendy Davis (D-Tarrant County), the Democratic candidate for Governor, by a whopping 16 points, the margin of error is taken care of more than five times over. I've attached the polls for all of the statewide non-judicial contests.
Of note, because of rounding errors, the Land Commissioner poll should not equal 100. Excel insisted upon putting Bush's total at 51% anyways, but the Tribune poll only put 50%.
These polls put the Democratic deficit anywhere from 15 points (Agriculture Commissioner) to 26 points (US Senate). The poll basically insinuates that there are people who are voting for Wendy Davis, yet are splitting their ballots for Dan Patrick. Or thinking that Jim Hogan is a sensible, qualified and tempered candidate for Agriculture Commissioner (he's none of those things), and yet Ken Paxton is the superior choice for Attorney General. Do these people truly exist? Are Texans truly that inept? I say no, and think those absurdities prove that the poll is just a bunch of stuff, as the Vice President would put it.
The polls also show third parties getting huge percentages of the vote, sometimes nearly 20%. That's a little bit silly, considering that they rarely surpass 5%. I tend to think the reason for their gross overperformance is that the poll is largely conducted via eager participants on the internet. You know, the people who have the extra zeal to come up with their own outlying political views.
Let's get something clear, no statewide Democrat is going to win this year. That much I am certain of. But the Democrats don't have to literally win in order to win, as counter-intuitive as that might sound. The slate needs to outdo Bill White's performance in 2010, which was roughly 42%. Ideally, they should do well enough to lift the ticket in Bexar County (San Antonio), Harris County and Nueces County (Corpus Christi) enough to elect some local Democrats. But showing progress from the last election is the most important thing. Battleground Texas will keep registering voters, demographics will keep moving in a good direction and Texas will transition inch-by-inch into a purple state. Vox made a similar point today.
Bud Kennedy at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram noted today, though, that the Texas Democrats have a considerable chance on not outdoing their 2010 performance. If the slate is less than 42%, alarm bells will ring. If it ranges from the high to low 30s, as this poll might suggest, it will be Armageddon for Texas politics. Battleground Texas will likely disband. National Democrats will think of the short-lived project to turn Texas blue and shake their heads. In the bars of Manhattan and Capitol Hill, it will be thought of with the same naivete as the New Coke debacle. I really don't want that to happen.
Through the first four days of early voting, the numbers are negligibly different from four years ago, with some minor differences I'll note in tomorrow morning's issue of The Daily Texan. That will be what determines how well Davis does. So please, please, vote.
Standard | | Tagged 2010 Election, 2014 Election, Bill White, Dan Patrick, George P. Bush, Glenn Hegar, Greg Abbott, Jim Hogan, John Cook, Ken Paxton, Kenneth Kendrick, Leticia Van de Putte, Mike Collier, Poll, Ryan Sitton, Sam Houston, Sid Miller, Stephen Brown, Wendy Davis	| 0 comments
by Texpatriate Editorial Board
Texpatriate Voter Guide
US SENATE – David Alameel (D)
US HOUSE, DISTRICT 2 – Ted Poe (R)
US HOUSE, DISTRICT 7 – James Cargas (D)
US HOUSE, DISTRICT 9 – Al Green (D)
US HOUSE, DISTRICT 18 – Sheila Jackson Lee (D)
US HOUSE, DISTRICT 29 – Gene Green (D)
GOVERNOR – Wendy Davis (D)
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR – Leticia Van de Putte (D)
ATTORNEY GENERAL – Sam Houston (D)
COMPTROLLER – Mike Collier (D)
LAND COMMISSIONER – George P. Bush (R)*
(*-Noah M. Horwitz dissented and supported John Cook (D))
AGRICULTURE COMMISSIONER – Kenneth Kendrick (G)
RAILROAD COMMISSIONER – Stephen Brown (D)
TEXAS SUPREME COURT, PLACE 1 – Bill Moody (D)
TEXAS SUPREME COURT, PLACE 6 – Jeff Brown (R)
TEXAS SUPREME COURT, PLACE 7 – Gina Benavides (D)
TEXAS SUPREME COURT, PLACE 8 – Phil Johnson (R)
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, PLACE 3 – Bert Richardson (R)
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, PLACE 4 – Kevin Yeary (R)
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, PLACE 9 – David Newell (R)
TEXAS SENATE, DISTRICT 7 – Whitney Bilyeu (L)
TEXAS SENATE, DISTRICT 15 – John Whitmire (D)
TEXAS SENATE, DISTRICT 17 – Rita Lucido (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 126 – Patricia Harless (R)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 128 – Wayne Smith (R)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 129 – Dennis Paul (R)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 130 – Allen Fletcher (R)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 131 – Alma Allen (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 132 – Luis Lopez (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 133 – Laura Nicol (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 134 – Sarah Davis (R)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 135 – NO ENDORSEMENT
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 137 – Gene Wu (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 139 – Sylvester Turner (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 140 – Armando Walle (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 141 – Senfronia Thompson (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 142 – Harold Dutton, Jr. (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 143 – Ana Hernandez Luna (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 144 – Mary Ann Perez (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 145 – Carol Alvarado (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 146 – Borris Miles (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 147 – Garnet Coleman (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 148 – Jessica Farrar (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 149 – Hubert Vo (D)
TEXAS HOUSE, DISTRICT 150 – Amy Perez (D)
14th COURT OF APPEALS, CHIEF JUSTICE – Kyle Carter (D)
1st COURT OF APPEALS, PLACE 3 – Jim Sharp (D)
1st COURT OF APPEALS, PLACE 5 – Laura Higley (R)
14th COURT OF APPEALS, PLACE 4 – Marc Brown (R)
14th COURT OF APPEALS, PLACE 7 – Gordon Goodman (D)
55th DISTRICT COURT – Jeff Shadwick (R)
113th DISTRICT COURT– Steven Kirkland (D)
157th DISTRICT COURT – Jim Peacock (D)
180th DISTRICT COURT – Randy Roll (D)
182nd DISTRICT COURT – Jeannine Barr (R)
183rd DISTRICT COURT – Vanessa Velasquez (R)
184th DISTRICT COURT – Mark Thering (D)
185th DISTRICT COURT – Mack McInnis (D)
189th DISTRICT COURT — Bill Burke (R)
190th DISTRICT COURT – Farrah Martinez (D)
208th DISTRICT COURT – Denise Collins (R)
209th DISTRICT COURT – Mike McSpadden (R)
228th DISTRICT COURT – Marc Carter (R)
230th DISTRICT COURT – Greg Glass (D)
232nd DISTRICT COURT – Mary Lou Keel (R)
234th DISTRICT COURT – Barbara Gardner (D)
245th DISTRICT COURT – Roy Moore (R)
246th DISTRICT COURT – Sandra Peake (D)
247th DISTRICT COURT – Chip Wells (D)
248th DISTRICT COURT – Shawna Reagin (D)
257th DISTRICT COURT – Judy Warne (R)
262nd DISTRICT COURT – Jules Johnson (D)
263rd DISTRICT COURT – Herb Ritchie (D)
269th DISTRICT COURT – George Arnold (D)
270th DISTRICT COURT – James Hippard Jr. (D)
280th DISTRICT COURT – Barbara Stalder (D)
281st DISTRICT COURT – Tanner Garth (D)
295th DISTRICT COURT – Latosha Lewis (D)
308th DISTRICT COURT – Jim Evans (D)
309th DISTRICT COURT – Kathy Vossler (D)
310th DISTRICT COURT – NO ENDORSEMENT
311th DISTRICT COURT – Sherri Cothrun (D)
312nd DISTRICT COURT – David Farr (D)
313rd DISTRICT COURT – Tracy Good (D)
314th DISTRICT COURT – Natalia Oakes (D)
315th DISTRICT COURT – Mike Schneider (R)
334th DISTRICT COURT – Daryl Moore (D)
DISTRICT ATTORNEY – Kim Ogg (D)
COUNTY JUDGE – Ed Emmett (R)
COUNTY CIVIL COURT #1 – Debra Mayfield (R)
COUNTY CIVIL COURT #2 – Scot Dollinger (D)
COUNTY CIVIL COURT #3 – Gloria Minnick (D)
COUNTY CIVIL COURT #4 – Damon Crenshaw (D)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #1 – Paula Goodhart (R)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #2 – Harold Landreneau (D)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #3 – Natalie Fleming (R)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #4 – Niki Harmon (D)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #5 – Ramona Franklin (D)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #6 – Linda Geffin (D)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #7 –Pam Derbyshire (R)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #8 – Jay Karahan (R)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #9 – Analia Wilkerson (R)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #10 – George Barnstone (D)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #11 – Diane Bull (R)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #12 – Robin Brown (R)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #13 – Don Smyth (R)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #14 – David Singer (D)
COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT #15 – Raul Rodriguez (D)
COUNTY PROBATE COURT #1 – Kim Hoesl (D)
COUNTY PROBATE COURT #2 – Josefina Rendon (D)
COUNTY PROBATE COURT #3 – Jerry Simoneaux (D)
COUNTY PROBATE COURT #4 – NO ENDORSEMENT*
(*-Noah M. Horwitz personally will support James Horwitz (D))
DISTRICT CLERK -Chris Daniel (R)
COUNTY CLERK – Ann Bennett (D)
COUNTY TREASURER – David Rosen (D)
Standard | | Tagged 2014 Election, Endorsements	| 2 Comments
Texpatriate endorses for Governor
Governor Rick Perry, the longest serving chief executive in Texas' history (by far), will finally leave office next January. A whole lot has happened in the fourteen years since Texas had a different Governor. To put it in perspective, the members of this board were roughly in the 1st Grade when Perry assumed office.
Though such an assertion might be unpopular given our state's booming economy, we think that Perry has been a poor governor. He wasn't responsible for putting the shale in the ground, nor was he behind George Mitchell's innovations in efficiently extracting it. And, despite what his straw-man arguments may have you believe, his support of this energy boom did not put him in a unique place compared to Democrats. While Texas' economy has boomed under Perry, it has mostly been unrelated to his sloppy tenure.
That tenure has been filled with corruption, cronyism and ineptitude of the highest magnitude. Now, Attorney General Greg Abbott, the Republican candidate for Governor, looks likely to continue along that same misguided path. Recent headlines have shown Abbott was either complicit in the sloppy administration of the Texas Enterprise Fund, which allotted grants to friends of the Governor without any formal application, or was totally checked out of his job as an ostensible watchdog for the state.
Most importantly, Abbott looks like he will not only continue but expand Perry's rotten legacy of mollifying the Tea Party above actually solving the state's problem. We have crumbling highways, but Abbott appears complacent with maintaining the ludicrously low gas tax. Our schools are failing, but Abbott is perfectly content with the deleterious effects of 2011 cuts he repeatedly defended.
On a plethora of other issues, Abbott espouses rhetoric that, generously, belongs in the 20th century. He opposes a statewide ban on texting-while-driving, supports the evisceration of the Voting Rights Act and opposes abortions even in cases of rape and incest. He supports the terrible idea of allowing college students to bring their concealed handguns on campus. We could go on like this for a few hundred more words, but we digress.
For Abbott and others, the legacy of Lyndon Johnson and Bob Bullock is only a distant memory. Pragmatism and otherwise working together to reach consensus on the serious problems facing our state has almost become passe, compared to getting a soundbite in on Fox News or for the next Tea Party meeting. Abbott is no statesman, just another demagogue who will try his hardest to run Texas into the ground.
State Senator Wendy Davis (D-Tarrant County), the Democratic candidate, is not perfect either. She has run a rather mediocre campaign, with grandiose plans that lack specifics or funding targets. Some of the specific ideas, such as allowing the Top 20% of High School students to receive automatic acceptance to the state's public universities if they pledge to major in education, are just comically terrible. Her commercials have been off-key and her debate performances abysmal. Sadly, in many situations, Davis has evidently developed a penchant for dancing around the truth. But no matter the roughness of her campaign, she is a significantly better choice than Abbott. Simply put, while our objections to Davis are based on her — or, quite likely, her campaign's — incompetence, our objections to Abbott are based on his unmitigated malice. We find the former quality to be the lesser of the evils.
Davis cares more about helping Texans than necessarily implementing her ideology; Abbott is the opposite. Despite what some frustrating newspaper editorials from around the state may have insinuated, Davis would work well with Republicans if elected. She has done so on both the Texas Senate and in her previous position as a member of the Fort Worth City Council. To think that her respect and open-mindedness would subside abruptly at this time is without any rationalization.
Like most of the other statewide choices this year, the race for Governor presents a fairly easy question. Only one candidate wants to protect women by ensuring health clinics that provide a wide variety of services stay open. Only one candidate recognizes LGBT people as worthy of dignity and respect. Only one candidate unequivocally would not defend a ban on interracial marriage (yes, we did not mis-type there). That candidate is Wendy Davis. And despite some serious concerns about her campaign and the depth of her platform, she is just the right choice over Abbott for Governor.
Accordingly, this board endorses Wendy Davis for Governor.
The Texpatriate Editorial Board is comprised of Noah M. Horwitz & Olivia Arena of Austin, George Bailey of Boston, Luis Fayad of College Station and Andrew Scott Romo of New Orleans. Editorials represent a majority opinion of the voting board.
Standard | | Tagged 2014 Election, Editorial Board, Endorsements	| 0 comments
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MPs have announced that there will be an inquiry into UK vehicle testing in light of the Volkswagen emissions scandal.
The Government has said the VW emissions scandal shows the UK vehicle testing system is clearly inadequate.
Chairman of the transport select committee, Louise Ellman, said the VW scandal has raised some serious concerns about whether vehicle type approval testing is actually fit for purpose.
The Volkswagen emissions scandal has highlighted the need across the EU for real world driving emissions testing. The system to approve vehicles in the UK has been around for more than 20 years and seems out of date. It's based around common EU standards and is divided into two parts. One can pass an entire vehicle; the other is used to pass components or individual systems.
The transport select committee will now look into the approval system and is looking for evidence on points including the effectiveness of the current controls, the gap between real world emissions and test condition emissions and whether the range of points covered on the tests is wide enough.
VW has announced that many Audi, Seat, Skoda and Volkswagens currently on sale have incorrect CO2 emissions and mpg figures. The list includes petrol and diesel engines ranging from 1.0 to 2.0 litres in size.
Around 430,000 cars are affected, with some older cars also having suspect figures. The list has 32 different models across the brands but doesn't include the older vehicles.
The full list with all model variants listed can be found here.


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'Ma Rainey,' 'Chicago 7' score big in very odd Screen Actors Guild Awards broadcast
Mick LaSalle April 4, 2021Updated: April 5, 2021, 4:13 pm
Aaron Sorkin during the filming of "The Trial of the Chicago 7." Photo: Niko Tavernise / Associated Press
The Screen Actors Guild Awards gave its prize for outstanding performance by a cast in a Motion Picture to Aaron Sorkin's "The Trial of the Chicago 7," in what could be an indication of that movie's strength going into this month's Oscar ceremony. Actors, after all, are the academy's biggest voting bloc, and if they collectively decide that they like that movie, that can easily translate into a win for best picture.
Other actors and films got good news as well on Sunday, April 4, but before we get to those, let me first say something about the SAG Awards as a show: It felt strange — though it was probably no stranger than everything else this past year.
Perhaps now that the vaccines are here and the coronavirus pandemic seems to be easing up, it's more impossible to admit — not only to others, but to ourselves, as well — just how dispiriting all these contact-free big public events have been over the past year.
'Schitt's Creek,' Viola Davis among 2021 SAG Awards winners
Helen Mirren is seen on a control room video monitor as she announces the nominees for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture for the 27th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. Photo: Chris Pizzello / Associated Press
The Golden Globes on Feb. 28, another of those dispiriting public events, at least cultivated the illusion of being emceed on location by Amy Poehler and Tina Fey. The SAG show, however, felt like it never formally started.
The hourlong award ceremony began with a genial but not especially funny parody of the Apple TV+ series "Ted Lasso," with Jason Sudeikis and his co-stars all in character, speculating about the greatest ensemble in history (best ensemble is the informal name for SAG's cast award). Hannah Waddingham, in character as Rebecca, suggests a combo of spirits for a particular cocktail as the greatest ensemble ever, but it's not an especially funny remark, just an effort in the vague direction of funny.
And so it has been. All of us have been trying to make the best of this weird period — some of us onscreen, some of us in the audience. Yet at times it hardly seems worth straining to do something less than half as good as what used to be done effortlessly.
Take the spectacle of all these actors, decked out to the nines while sitting on their sofas, each of them like some literal rendering of the phrase "all dressed up with no place to go." They were like some collective emblem of the year we've all been through.
Likewise, the sight of SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris, sitting next to a tray containing a bottle of Champagne and a single glass, hardly read as celebratory, but rather like a tribute to the one we can all drink to. That is, lonesome drinking.
SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris speaks during the 27th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. Photo: Associated Press
Throughout the show, they tried to liven things up with high-spirited yet entirely joyless interviews with actors, in which they did things like critique their old headshots or talk about whether they know how to ride a horse. (Just so you know, if this ever comes up: Cynthia Erivo can, but Helen Mirren can't.)
However, right before the finish, they finally touched on the subject that we all have in common: the limitations placed on our lives by the pandemic and what we're all looking forward to when it's finally over. And Oakland native Daveed Diggs, a SAG Award nominee himself who participated in the virtual YBCA 100 Summit just the night before, put it well when he described that he missed being in a crowded audience.
"I miss people sweating on me," he said. "Let's bring that back."
That was a moment of connection. That broke down the barrier between the screen and the audience.
In this video grab provided by the SAG Awards, Daveed Diggs presents an award during the 27th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. Photo: Associated Press
As for the rest of SAG's movie awards, "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," the Netflix adaptation of the August Wilson play, did very well. Viola Davis won best actress for the title role, which means she is in contention for the Oscar, and the late Chadwick Boseman won best actor, continuing what seems like an unstoppable march to a posthumous best actor Academy Award.
Such a prospect reminds us all that being alive is the best, even better than winning an Oscar.
In the supporting categories, Daniel Kaluuya won best supporting actor for his portrayal of Fred Hampton in "Judas and the Black Messiah." Supporting actress went to Yuh-Jung Youn, a distinguished actress in her native South Korea, for her performance in "Minari."
Next up are the Academy Awards on April 25, and that show will probably look something like this one. But here's hoping that by next year, these broadcasts will not only look bizarre but feel really far away.
Review: Oscar-nominated 'Close' is one of the best movies of 2022
Review: Léa Seydoux and Mia Hansen-Løve score a triumph with 'One Fine Morning'
Chameleon Street

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


This year's Gracie Morumbi Beach Training was awesome! Kettlebells, Kids and Adults Jiu Jitsu, and Muay Thai Kickboxing classes were all going on in Ventura at Marina Park Beach this weekend. So much fun with family and friends coming out to support, hang out in the sun, and have fun during the training. Thanks everyone for coming out, what a great time!


I woke up this morning to find my name included in a list of recently nominated blogs for the Sunshine Blogger Award! Though I have been playing my hand at the blogging sphere for almost a year – I only got down to the nitty gritty aspect of it this past month, this is my very first nomination for ANY type of Blogging Award – and it's all thanks to Angela at Oh Happy Davis! If you haven't checked out this blog yet, be sure you do. The Davis Duo, Angela and Steven, blog about fitness, faith, raising teens and everything in-between! It's down to Earth, funny and filled with beautiful pictures of their family and their active lives.
#1 – What's your favorite holiday and why?
Hands down, it would have to be Halloween. The cooler air, the sound of leaves rushing across the pavement, the decorations and the laughter that seems to fill the spaces between the 'boos' – what's not to love?
#2 – What's your "go to" vacation destination?
#3 – What hobby would you do if time and money were not an issue?
#4 – What's your favorite color?
Toss up between green and red. The first soothes me while the second encourages me to try harder.
#5 – What are the most annoying habits that other people have that bother you?
Eating with their mouths open or being blatantly rude – for no reason.
#6 – What makes you the happiest?
Is it trite to say, My family? Perhaps, yet it's true. I am grateful for them, and the joy they inspire in me. A close second would have to be when I achieve a goal – THAT feeling is gold.
#7 – Are you a morning person or NOT a morning person?
What is this 'morning person' you speak of?
#8 – When people come to you for help, what do they normally come to you with?
Considering my field, most people that seek out my help have breastfeeding questions or or issues. Other than that, people come to me with matter of personal nature – mainly because I can keep a secret.
#9 – If you were frozen for 100 years, what's the first question you would ask when you woke up?
#10 – What age do you wish you could permanently be?
29 is my magical age, old enough to have my feet beneath me yet still young enough to know that the rest of my life was waiting for me. I had just met my soon to be husband (or re-met, as we were high school sweet hearts who took a 10 year break between dates) and life was easy. Simpler times.
#11 – What is something you like to do the "old-fashioned" way?
Journaling. I write every night in a leather backed journal, penning all my daily thoughts and events that happened recently.
My Nominees for the Sunshine Bloggers Award!
These blogs are filled with interesting tid-bits, sound life advice, humorous segues, stunning pictures and enough personality to entertain even the toughest Twitter critic. I hope you find them as delightful as I do!
What first inspired you to blog?
What advice would you give to someone considering blogging for the first time?
Name one material item you cannot live without.
What skill would you love to master?
What is the farthest you have ever traveled away from home? Business or pleasure?
If you were ever to become famous, what would it likely be for?
Again – thank you so much Angela!
I can't wait to read all the answers from these talented bloggers and learn more about them! While I have listed their Twitter handles and their websites, most also participate on other Social Media Platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram. Be sure to look them up!


text:
India All India 20 Jan 2017 ED issues summons to controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik
ED issues summons to controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik
Published : Jan 20, 2017, 8:47 pm IST
Updated : Jan 20, 2017, 8:47 pm IST
The agency wants to record the statement of Naik, who is abroad, and hence the summons were issued.
Islamic preacher Zakir Naik. (Photo: PTI)
Mumbai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued summons to Zakir Naik as part of its probe against the controversial preacher and his Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) under anti-money laundering laws.
Officials said today the agency has issued the summons to Naik under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and has asked him to appear by this month-end.
The agency wants to record the statement of Naik, who is abroad, and hence the summons were issued, they said. Separate summons have been issued against his organisation.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had registered a criminal case against Naik and IRF last month after taking cognisance of a complaint booked by the NIA under the Unlawful
Activities (Prevention) Act against them.
ED is looking into the charges of alleged illegal funds laundered by the accused and the subsequent proceeds of crime thus generated.
The agency has already scanned some documents showing "doubtful" banking transactions.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had last month registered a case against 51-year-old Naik under anti-terror laws for allegedly promoting enmity between different religious groups.
After registering the case against Naik and IRF, the NIA along with Mumbai police had carried out searches at 10 places in the megapolis, including residential premises of some of the office bearers of the foundation, which was earlier put on restricted list by the Union Home Ministry for receiving funds from abroad.
Naik, who has been staying in Saudi Arabia to evade arrest after some perpetrators of the Dhaka terror strike last year claimed they were inspired by him, has been booked along with unnamed IRF officials under section 153-A of IPC (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) beside various sections of UAPA.
The charges levelled by the NIA also include those under sections 10 (being member of an unlawful organisation), 13 (punishment for being member of illegal organisation) and 18 (punishment for being involved in a conspiracy for committing any terror act) of UAPA.
IRF came under the scanner of security agencies after one of the terrorists involved in the Dhaka cafe attack allegedly posted on social media that they had been inspired by Naik's speeches.
Maharashtra Police has also registered criminal cases against Naik for his alleged involvement in radicalizing Muslim youth and luring them into terror activities.
Tags: enforcement directorate (ed), zakir naik, irf
Location: India, Maharashtra, Mumbai (Bombay)
NIA likely to quiz controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik
Zakir Naik's IRF moves Delhi HC to revoke Centre's immediate ban
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text:
Peguei um Ita no norte é um samba-enredo composto por Demá Chagas, Arizão, Bala, Guaracy e Celso Trindade desenvolvido pelo carnavalesco Mário Borriello, com o qual a escola de samba Salgueiro conquistou, em 1993, seu penúltimo título no carnaval carioca. Também conhecido pelo nome Explode Coração - por causa do emblemático refrão "Explode coração! / Na maior felicidade! / É lindo o meu Salgueiro! / Contagiando, sacudindo essa cidade" - é reconhecido como um dos maiores sambas de todos os tempos.

Foi inspirada na canção "Peguei um Ita no Norte" (1945) de Dorival Caymmi, que narra a viagem costeira a bordo do vapor "Itapé" quando o compositor baiano migrou em 1938 para a o Rio de Janeiro, a então capital federal. Ita era o nome que se dava aos navios que faziam a navegação de cabotagem, entre o Norte e o Sul do Brasil. Essa denominação era usada porque a Companhia Nacional de Navegação Costeira dava nomes a suas embarcações sempre começando por "ita", pedra em tupi: Itaquatirara, Itapé, Itanajé, entre outros.

O sambista Neguinho da Beija-Flor chegou a declarar, em entrevista, que ao ouvir a apresentação, já sabia que a escola, mesmo tendo sido apenas a terceira a se apresentar, já havia ganho o carnaval daquele ano.

Ligações externas

Sambas-enredo
GRES Acadêmicos do Salgueiro

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


ANDREW PATERSON was 20 years old when he opened his first studio at 32 Church Street, Inverness, in 1897. This address was also occupied by the photographer Miss Mary MacGillivray…possibly the daughter of his previous employer.
Many different studio props and backdrops were used over the decades.
A news report datelined London 14th June 1898 noted: "BRITISH HOME DEFENCES. VOLUNTEERS TO BE REARMED. The British War Office proposes to rearm the volunteer artillery forces throughout the country." It's presumed these are the Volunteers Paterson was referring to in his advertisement campaign.
In 1900 he relocated the studio to 3 New Market Entry (off Church Street), which in 1888 had been the studio of local photographer Adam Cooper. Paterson's older sister, the 27 year old Elsie B. MacKintosh, who had been widowed the previous year, worked for him as his studio saloonist (doing hair and make-up) at this time.
Paterson's widowed sister Elsie Black Mackintosh, outside the studio entrance in 1905.
The studio upper floor landing beneath the skylight was used as a backdrop for almost 80 years.
By 1901 Paterson was a frequent exhibitor at the Royal Photographic Society in London, and details of his entries can be found in the catalogue records of the annual exhibitions of the Society (1870-1915). In 1901 his entry was My Wife. His 1902 entry was of a partially-clad woman, Portrait of a Young Lady, and in the General Professional Photography section he showed Mrs P. His studio moved to 15 Academy Street in 1903, and his entry for the Society that year was titled Head of a Man.
In 1905 the buildings in Academy Street were re-numbered and the studio became 19 Academy Street. His 1906 Royal Photographic Society entry was simply titled A Portrait (which had a price tag of 42/-). In 1908 he won the Scottish National Edinburgh, and in 1911 the Scottish National Glasgow. His Royal Photographic Society entry for 1912 was A Highland Roadway and in 1920 he won an Edinburgh Photographic Society award, the only Scottish photographer to gain such a distinction in the annual open exhibition that year.
In 1921 Paterson's son Hector became his apprentice, assisting him in 1923 with shooting the official photograph of a group of officers, including the Prince of Wales, at the Seaforth Memorial Ceremony at Fort George. In 1924 Hector studied at the Edinburgh College of Art, while being apprenticed to the photographer Drummond Young.
Paterson won two awards in Paris, in 1902 and 1903.
When the first Scottish PEN Conference was held in Edinburgh in 1927, it featured Paterson's gallery of famous literary personages, including George Bernard Shaw, Hilaire Belloc, and many others with worldwide reputations. A 1929 portrait study of Compton Mackenzie contributed to the Scottish National Salon was specially commended by the critics. (A gelatine silver print of the Mackenzie portrait, signed and dated by Mackenzie in 1931, was bought by the National Portrait Gallery in London from Bonhams in March 2011 for £600 including premium.) The Scottish National Gallery and Museum of Photography in Edinburgh was opened in 1931, and Paterson had three exhibits at its Foundation Exhibition. They were artistic bromide studies of William Mackay Mackenzie, D.Litt.; Rev. Professor John Macleod, D.D.; and James Maxton, M.P. Again Paterson was congratulated on the excellence of his work.
Reverend Principal John MacLeod D.D., Minister of North Church, Inverness 1913-1930.
Paterson built up a remarkably fine collection of photographic studies of people distinguished in literature, politics, science, and industry. Among the many who were photographed by him were Sir John Barbirolli, Lloyd George, Ramsay MacDonald, Cunninghame Graham, Clement Attlee, Sir David Young Cameron, Herbert Morrison, Matheson Lang, Hutin Britton, Hilaire Belloc, John Gielgud, Anna Neagle, the Czech statesman Jan Masaryk, Noel Coward, Hugh Dalton, Alfred Hitchcock, Neil M. Gunn, Lord Lovat, John Murray, the artist Sir William Russell Flint, and General Smuts.
Paterson was always given a heads up by the Inverness station master if anyone notable was coming in by train to Inverness. As his studio was over the road from the station, Paterson would meet people off the train and this way he eventually took portraits of almost everyone of any importance.
Paterson's daughter collected the autographs of people who visited the studio. At top right is the signature of Scottish M.P. James Maxton from January 1925.
quite often combined his talents.
to children dressed in costume.
Paterson used to great effect one particular technique that was virtually new at the time. By using a soft focus lens combined with subtle lighting effects, he was able to eliminate blemishes and erase wrinkles in order to create a more flattering portrait.


text:
UO student's message of respect goes viral
Kelly Ardis
�Real men treat women with respect.�
A simple message, really. But with crimes such as the recent high-profile rape trial in Steubenville, Ohio, it seems the message didn�t stick with everyone, and one University of Oregon student thought some people might need some reminding.
So Samantha Stendal, a sophomore majoring in cinema studies, created a 26-second public service announcement called �A Needed Response.�
In the video, a man finds a woman passed out on the couch after drinking too much. Looking into the camera, the man says, �Hey bros, check who passed out on the couch. Guess what I�m going to do to her?�
He then brings the woman a pillow, a blanket and a mug of water, before delivering his line about how men should treat women with respect.
The video was posted Friday with the line, �To the Steubenville rapists ... or any rapists out there.�
It has since gone viral, attracting more than 1.3 million views on youtube.com.
On March 17, Ma�lik Richmond, 16, and Trent Mays, 17, two high school football players in Steubenville, were convicted of raping a drunk 16-year-old girl at a party last summer. Social media played a big role in the case both at the time of the crime and since: Photos, videos and Tweets posted online by partygoers helped convict the teens. The victim has also received threats via Twitter from two teenage girls, who now face potential legal consequences.
Many people, including Stendal, were outraged by media coverage of the boys� conviction that seemed to focus on the rapists� ruined futures and not on the effects of the assault on the victim.
One account that particularly angered some viewers was from CNN�s Poppy Harlow, who after the convictions reported that it was �incredibly difficult, even for an outsider like me, to watch what happened as these two young men that had such promising futures � star football players, very good students � literally watched as they believe their life fell apart.�
Stendal, 19, said she was struck by a stream of online comments that insisted the girl put herself in a dangerous situation.
�During finals week (last week), I was reading a lot about the Steubenville rape case, and all the discussion online kept saying, �What could the girl have done differently?�?� Stendal recalled Tuesday in a phone interview from her hometown of Sammamish, Wash., where she�s home for spring break.
�No, she should not be raped at all,� Stendal said. �I wanted to create something positive to show how we should treat people when they�re vulnerable, instead of victim-blaming.�
Stendal came up with the idea for the video early last week, she said. Joining up with friend and fellow UO cinema studies student Aaron Blanton � both are members of the University Film Organization student club � they filmed the video at Blanton�s apartment. Stendal recruited fellow UO students Justin Gotchall to play the man and Kelsey Jones to play the woman in the video.
Stendal and Blanton edited the video Thursday night and posted it to YouTube early Friday morning. It�s been averaging more than 250,000 views every day since. �I did not imagine it getting as big as it did,� Stendal said Tuesday. �I�m glad about the discussion it formed. I did not expect it.�
The message the video sends is �an obvious (one that) people should already know,� she said. The response to the video, she said, points to the work that needs to be done to fix the �rape culture� that accepts criminal behavior and blames the victim.
Although a lot of the online responses to the video have been positive, some comments are troubling, Stendal said. �Some of the scarier responses I�ve seen have said that drunk girls deserve to be treated poorly,� she said.
�A lot of people feel helpless in this situation,� Stendal opined. �They feel it�s easier to tell girls what not to do than to try to stop rape culture entirely.�
Stendal said her overriding goal was simply �to promote the idea of treating one another like a decent human being.�
Regardless of a handful of negative comments, the national attention the video has received shows how many people care and stand by victims such as the 16-year-old Steubenville girl.
�I�m happy to see at least a conversation begin (on) what we can do to help one another,� Stendal said. �I hope it continues to grow, and people see what we can be doing (to stop rape culture) and that everyone else knows how to take care of one another properly.�


1. LORD YOUR-lf LOVE SERVE HUMBLE.
USE YOUR-lf MERCY FORGIVE SIN.
THROUGH OUR VOICE, THROUGH OUR HEART.
2. SOME YOUR CHILDREN HOME HAVE-NONE.
STILL SOME HUNGRY BEG-FOR BREAD.
STILL HAVE PRISONERS REALLY-WANT FREE.
STILL WE MOURN FOR PEOPLE DEAD.
CAUSE SICK HEALTHY, SOUL LIBERATE.
TO OUR WORLD, BECOME WHOLE.
YOUR-lf LOVE SHOW US LIGHT.
IDEA-LIKE SUNRISE HELP US SEE.
INFORM US HOW HELP PEOPLE BURDENED.
YOUR-lf COMPASSION TEACH US WORK.
WE INSPIRED SERVE OUR NEIGHBORS.
LIFE OVERFLOW, WE SHARE-WITH (2h)#ALL.
Notes: BURDEN/ED - (2h)[C], POs ><, FOs up, are placed on DS shoulder and press it down so that the body tips > DS.
CRUCIFIED - Pinky side of [S] is "driven" into palm of [B], PO away, FO up, then vice versa + hold (2h)[B] out, POs away, as if on the cross.
FEEL-DEFLATED - [C], PO > NDS, FO up, is held at midchest and closes to [O^]. You can hold [B], PO down, FO > DS underneath it.
GIFT / GIFT-TO - (2h)[X], POs ><, FOs up, nod downwards at wrist to show that something is given as a gift.
PURPOSE - THINK MEAN. For a QuickTime file of this sign, see ASL Pro: Purpose.
PARALLEL - (2h), POs down, FOs away, move forward. For a QuickTime file of this sign, see ASL Pro: Parallel.
COMPASSION/ATE - HEART + (2h)[5^] descend slightly twice while closing to (2h)[O^] but hands close to heart.
LIBERATE - Starts like PRESSURE, DH [B], PO down, FO away, push down slightly on [S], PO > DS, FO away, then the DH is brought upwards suddenly and the signer mouths "off".
WHOLE - (2h)[B^], POs up, FOs ><, DH circles around NDH and lands on its palm. For a QuickTime file of COMPLETE, see ASL Pro: Whole.
every gift which you impart.
still the hungry cry for bread.
to our world to make it whole.
To hear the music (without words), go to http://www.rockhay.org/worship/music/lordwhoselove.htm.


Four Season Harvest is another Coleman classic, in which he provides further details on growing around the calendar. He describes all kinds of season extension structures and techniques.
Softcover, 8x10, color cover, B&W interior, 236 pages.


The objectives of advertisement controls for health and medicinal products is to ensure that accurate and factual information about the products is disseminated and to ensure that the advertisements and sales promotion activities do not mislead consumers or induce unnecessary purchase or consumption of the products.
The advertisements and sales promotion of therapeutic products (TP) are controlled under the Health Products Act (HPA) and its subsidiary legislation, the Health Products (Advertisement of Therapeutic Products) Regulations. Advertisements and sales promotions of medicinal products remains under the control of the Medicines Act and its subsidiary legislation, the Medicines (Medical Advertisements) Regulations.
Submit and manage permits and applications online, e.g. apply@prism, amend@prism, renewal@prism, withdrawal@prism and etc.


text:
$7.3 Million California Mountain Contemporary Comes With Ski Country Perks
A Luxury Lodge Beckons Along The Unspoiled New Zealand Coastline
A Standout Estate Asks $13 Million In Quebec's Prestigious Westmount
Unspoilt Acreage In Montana's Big Sky Country Hits The Market For $14 Million
Glacier-Surrounded Hunting Lodge Carries On A 100-Year Tradition In New Zealand
$11 Million Condo In New York Historic NoMad Neighborhood Stays True To Its Glory Days
Austin-Adjacent Home Reflects A Love Of Light, Geometry And Horizon-Busting Views
Beachfront Perch Offers Luxury Living Along Florida's Atlantic Coast
ForbesReal EstateForbes Global Properties
Manhattan Shifts To A Seller's Market In The Second Quarter
Lisa Chamoff
The New York City borough of Manhattan has shifted to a seller's market.
The second quarter of 2021 was the busiest since at least 2004 for the Manhattan residential scene, continuing a shift to a seller's market, according to a recent report from real estate data firm UrbanDigs.
More than 4,380 deals were signed in the second quarter, up more than 24% from the previous quarter, and an increase of nearly 600% from a year ago.
The four-bedroom luxury residence at 15 West 63rd St. is priced at just under $10 million.
WARBURG REALTY
Over the same time period, the number of new listings rose nearly 33% to more than 5,700. This is the largest number of new listings during any second quarter in UrbanDigs' data set, which goes back to 2004, though it remains shy of the record of 6,375 set during the third quarter of 2020, as the market reopened during the pandemic.
Also last quarter, the dollar volume of contracts signed surged to nearly $10 billion, 30% higher than the next closest quarter, the second of 2015, and nearly 750% higher than the same period a year ago.
Meanwhile, time on the market dropped 45% to 66 days, as buyer demand increased.
This four-bedroom apartment at 52 East End Ave., listed for $9.995 million, is the type of larger ... [+] unit in high demand.
Prices are also up, and any pandemic discounts are long gone. The median price in Manhattan increased 6.4% from the first quarter and 14% from a year ago to $1.14 million.
Not surprisingly, larger units are in high demand. Compared to the previous quarter, the median price of units with three or more bedrooms rose nearly 7% to $3.1 million, while the median price of studios slipped 2% to $600,000.
In his own market report, Frederick Warburg Peters, the chief executive officer of Warburg Realty notes that the past quarter was historic.
"Every week since February has seen more than 30 contracts signed at $4 million and over, the most extraordinary run since before the 2008 recession," Peters wrote in his report. "In New York, the upward price creep has begun, especially for units priced under $5 million and the hottest new condominiums. It has been one of the hottest springs on record (in every sense) and the real estate community anticipates a busy summer ahead."
The median price for a studio, like this one at 15 West 12th St., listed for $650,000, was down 2%.
Maria Daou, a broker at Warburg Realty, called the second quarter a "frenzy."
"This was my busiest quarter in 22 years of real estate," Daou says.
The quarter also saw an end to the buyer's market in Manhattan.
"There are not as many deals to be had as there were earlier this year," says Becki Danchik, a broker at Warburg Realty. "There are still buyers out there who think they are going to get a deep discount, but those days are over."
Warburg Realty is a founding member of Forbes Global Properties, a consumer marketplace and membership network of elite brokerages selling the world's most luxurious homes.
Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. Check out my website.


text:
Gordon Jennings Laing (* 16. Oktober 1869 in London (Ontario); † 1. September 1945 in Lake Zurich) war ein US-amerikanischer klassischer Philologe, der von 1899 bis 1935 als Professor an der University of Chicago wirkte.

Leben
Gordon Jennings Laing war gebürtiger Kanadier. Er studierte an der University of Toronto, wo er 1891 den Bachelor-Grad erlangte. Anschließend vertiefte er seine Studien an der Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore bei Basil Lanneau Gildersleeve und Minton Warren und wurde 1896 mit der Dissertation The Genitive of Value in Latin and Other Constructions with Verbs of Rating promoviert wurde. Von 1897 bis 1899 arbeitete er als Latein-Dozent am Bryn Mawr College. 1899 wechselte er an die University of Chicago, wo er später zum Professor ernannt wurde. Von 1911 bis 1912 arbeitete er an der American School of Classical Studies at Athens, im Jahr 1916/1917 war er Sather Professor. Ab 1919 war er Leiter des altsprachlichen Fachbereichs an der Universität. 1921 wechselte er an die McGill University, wo er auch Dekan der Faculty of Arts war. 1923 kehrte er nach Chicago zurück, wo er bis zu seiner Emeritierung (1935) blieb.

Neben dem akademischen Lehramt und seiner Forschungsarbeit nahm Laing an der akademischen Selbstverwaltung der University of Chicago Anteil (1931–1935 Dekan der Division of Humanities, 1940–1943 Alumni Dean) und war führendes Mitglied in altertumswissenschaftlichen Vereinigungen. Von 1919 bis 1920 war er Vorsitzender der Classical Association of the Middle West and South und von 1924 bis 1925 Vorsitzender der American Philological Association. Von 1905 bis 1908 war er Geschäftsführender Herausgeber des Classical Journal, von 1905 bis 1921 und von 1923 bis zu seinem Tod Mitherausgeber der Zeitschrift Classical Philology.

Laings Forschungsarbeit konzentrierte sich auf die römische Literatur aller Epochen, besonders auf die Dichter Catull, Horaz und Ovid. Außer seiner Dissertation, die 1920 in Chicago erschien, veröffentlichte er zahlreiche Aufsätze in den Zeitschriften Classical Journal und Classical Philology.

Literatur
 John Francis Latimer: Laing, Gordon Jennings. In: Ward W. Briggs (Hrsg.): Biographical Dictionary of North American Classicists. Greenwood Press, Westport CT u. a. 1994, ISBN 0-313-24560-6, S. 335f.

Weblinks

Altphilologe (20. Jahrhundert)
Hochschullehrer (University of Chicago)
Hochschullehrer (McGill University)
Sather Professor
US-Amerikaner
Geboren 1869
Gestorben 1945
Mann


Hong Kong, 11 June 2013 -- Kerry Logistics, a leading global logistics service provider, has opened the doors on three new logistics centres with a combined total area of 140,000 sq. m. in Chongqing, Wuxi and Xiamen, as the company continues to strengthen its logistics network to better serve its customers� needs in China.
�Opening three new logistics centres demonstrates our commitment to our customers in China. We also see that our customers can leverage real competitive advantage from these new state-of-the-art facilities and our logistics centre network through improved efficiency and reduced inventory costs,� said Edwardo Erni, Managing Director � Mainland China, Kerry Logistics.
�All of the new facilities are equipped with the latest security and IT systems providing maximum security and improved tracking and supply chain transparency for our customers,� he added.
Phase 2 of the Chongqing logistics centre opened in February this year, with an area of 65,800 sq. m bringing the total area of the facility to 86,800 sq. m., becoming the largest of the company�s seventeen facilities in China. The new centre will serve as an important hub for the Western China market and offer a full range of logistics services for multiple industry sectors including automotive parts and accessories, pharmaceutical and healthcare, electronics and technology.
Kerry Logistics is Asia�s premier logistics service provider with a strong focus on China. Based in Hong Kong, Kerry Logistics has offices in 34 countries and regions with 20,000+ employees and a transportation fleet of 8,000+ vehicles. Its core business encompasses integrated logistics, international freight forwarding and supply chain solutions. By owning and managing more than 3.5m sq.m. of logistics facilities, it provides customers with reliability and flexibility to support their future expansion and long-term growth. Kerry Logistics Network Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Hong Kong-listed Kerry Properties Limited.


Dr. Misch is dedicated to providing you with the very best in Traditional Chinese Medicine care available. She hopes this website will introduce you to, and answer some of your questions about, oriental medicine and her practice philosophy. Please spend a few minutes reviewing this information and feel free to ask her about details not covered.
Dr. Misch and her patients work together as a team. Your good health and well-being are the goals she wants to achieve through preventative medicine, client education, and herbal and acupuncture treatments of illness and injury. She welcomes any suggestions you may have, to improve the care and services provided to you, and she looks forward to seeing you obtain the health you deserve.


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Aberdeen to consider Broadford Works funding request
Aberdeen City Council is to consider a request for £15k of funding from the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust to conduct an options appraisal for Scotland's oldest iron framed mill.
Grey Mill at Broadford Works is considered to be the most important building on the former industrial complex but is now one of a number of at risk A-listed buildings in the site.
Vacant since 2004 it is hoped that the building can be restored following completion of a survey and identification of possible end use, users and designs.
Funding for the work has already been secured to the tune of £10k from the Architectural Heritage Fund; £7.5k from Historic Scotland; £7.5k from Aberdeen City Heritage Trust and £7.5k from the site owner, First Construction Ltd.
A 2011 application to turn the area into a mixed-use extension of the city centre was rejected by the council.
Read next: Sir Ian Wood rejects seat on Aberdeen regeneration board
Read previous: Lego Brick City exhibition opens at Paisley Museum


Anisa Khalifa is a film, TV, and culture writer who loves analyzing the stories we tell about ourselves and each other. She also writes a lot of poems and drinks way too much coffee. She is currently working on her Master's in Critical Asian Humanities at Duke University, and lives with her family in North Carolina.


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On 16 June, our country commemorates Youth Day to remind us all of the determination and resilience of our youth. It's a time to remember how they have continuously proven that they have the power to forge their path, even in the face of adversity.
A shining example of this tenacity has taken root in the agricultural sector, where South African youth are making a place for themselves within a sector typically saturated by men over the age of 60.
Take Njabulo Mbokane for example. This 24-year-old female farmer from humble beginnings has ploughed a future for herself in farming! Njabulo is a testament to the fact that, with the right agronomic and market support, youth have every potential to be successful in the agricultural sector and challenge the status quo.
Njabulo discovered her passion for agriculture while tending to her parents' backyard vegetable garden. Today she is an award-winning farmer operating on a 26ha plot of land.
Njabulo turned her passion into a business, and attributes her career breakthrough to an intervention supported by The South African Breweries (SAB) in conjunction with FarmSol, SAB's implementation partner.
The success of Njabulo's business, AW Dalia, was ignited when she became a participant in SAB's Farmer Development Programme. This programme supports over 520 emerging farmers and is an example of SAB's commitment to young farmers.
The programme provides the following:
-	Patient funding for Agri-SMMEs for production
-	Access to modern production inputs
-	A route to formal markets via a guaranteed offtake agreement with SAB
-	Agronomic extension support through technical experts that provide training and mentorship
-	Agronomic and business training for skill development through classroom and field-based training
Njabulo started off with no capital, no assets and no agricultural background, so the path was not always easy. She had to become a fast learner on the programme in order to realise her farming potential.
Njabulo's participation in the programme had a significant impact on her business. She overcame her biggest challenges and achieved the 2019 SAB-FarmSol Young Emerging Farmer of the Year Award.
Njabulo receives access to an interest-free loan for the procurement of needed inputs and services as well as a soil correction grant that covered the purchase and application of lime onto her fields.
With healthier soil, along with support from the SAB research and development team for the introduction of crop management tools, Njabulo is able to increase the quantity and quality of her maize yield, which she then supplies to SAB.
Aron Kole, managing director of FarmSol describes Njabulo as a farmer with a desire to learn and grow. He says she is an entrepreneur that goes out of her way to help others.
Njabulo should be seen as a beacon of hope for any young person with aspirations of becoming a farmer. She has been awarded the title of FarmSol's Youth Ambassador, encouraging young people to take up farming as a viable career.
Njabulo says "One of the hardest challenges I encounter is being young, black and female. Transformation is moving at a slow pace. The face of the industry has always been male, so amidst everything else I want to change perceptions about women in agriculture,"
Njabulo has challenged the status quo and come out on top, proving that farming no longer needs to be a field dominated by older males. It is, in fact, a promising career path ready for young, dynamic and determined males and females of all backgrounds to plant their seed and grow their own success.


I began photography when I was a young boy, of course this was using film when each click was precious. Those early days started a passion and drive to create stunning photographs. That was many years ago, but the drive remains. An opportunity in 2012 allowed me to turn my passion into a business and I have not looked back.
Your wedding is unique to you, that is why I work closely with you before the big day ensuring a relaxed and smooth coverage of your wedding. Many couples tell me afterwards that they barely noticed me and that results in not only great natural shots, but lasting memories of your day.
"Joe was absolutely fantastic and I cannot recommend him enough. He photographed our wedding in Salisbury 2 weeks ago. My guests were amazed at how Joe blended into the wedding party and took wonderful shots of everyone without them even noticing. He worked efficiently and was very patient, especially when trying to get the family away from the champagne for the group photos. We received the photos the following week with a clear and informative email about the next steps and we can't stop looking at them! Thank you for capturing our day so beautifully! Felicity and Christian"
"We both just wanted to say a huge thank you for being our photographer on our special wedding day. The day was so perfect and we both absolutely loved it. Truly the best day of our lives. You were fabulous and just melted into the background. Everyone thought you were great and you were so patient with taking all our pictures."
"We used Joe as the photographer for our wedding at Old Wardour Castle on the 24th June. My wife and I were so impressed by the professionalism of Joe and the outstanding quality of all the photos. The pre wedding venue visits were so helpful, on the day he was brilliant taking photos as he helped make the day go so smoothly and we barely noticed he was there resulting in great natural photos. Kirsty and I would like to say a massive thank you for giving us the perfect photos to remember our special day."


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Back by popular demand! Certified Yoga Teacher, Kerri Bermudez will introduce you to the breathing techniques and series of postures that make up yoga. Yoga can be an effective method for reducing stress, and toning your body. All abilities are welcome. Please bring a yoga mat or beach towel. In person registration required with $20 check or money order payable to Sayville Library.
Non-refundable Fee: $20 check or money order payable to Sayville Library.


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Editorial: House of Horrors And HealthCare Reform: Trump 1, America 0
Posted on May 5, 2017 by joecantlupe
So President Trump goes to the Rose Garden and lets his new GOP House pals run around outside the White House and soak in a victory of Trumpcare health bill passage. Wow. What a pathetic victory. They remind me of a baseball team soaking themselves in champagne after a 162-game season and then go on to lose a one-game playoff. Coming up next is the Senate. Hopefully, the voices of pained patients and facts will have the upper-hand in the upper house. Comm'n, moderate Republicans in the Senate, there are still a few of you left. Just think of all the people with pre-existing conditions, whose lives could be damaged by Trump and his cronies. All for a teeny victory that can be held in a little hand.
Ok, America lost in the House, which voted to take away healthcare from the aging and the poor. The Republicans slapped high-fives in the White House backyard. Even the losing Democrats were childish. They are singing "Na na hey hey Goodbye." They referred to predictions that Republicans would lose elections after yesterday's vote.
Gee, Congress this is serious. And it's not about you.
A hex on the House, I say the heck with you. Send In the Clowns Oh, yeah, they are there, in Congress.
And then there's Trump, like his hero Andrew Jackson, running a victory lap, but meaningful? Jackson won the Battle of New Orleans weeks after the War of 1812 was over. Great for symbolism at the time. That's what Trump is all about. Symbolism. Show.
For Trump, though, the reality war is just beginning in healthcare reform. People are going to face up to his nonsense and despicable one-liners, or statements that have no thoughts behind them. And the lies. Oh yeah. The pre-existing conditions, coverage for everyone. Sure, Donald, sure.
And this is a 70-year-old man who didn't show us his, er, clean-bill-of-health, or the taxes either.
Of course, the Republicans rushed through the legislation to get that little "victory." And it is little, despite the headlines today. Isn't Ryan supposed to be the wonk who loves counting pennies and spreadsheets? Sure. But why wait for the fiscal experts at the Congressional Budget Office to review it? Nah. Remember the first time the Republicans tried: The CBO put a big F grade on that one: 24 million more Americans would lose health insurance, adding to those millions already who don't have it. I guess the GOP didn't want to hear the bad news again.
Lots of people detested this bill that passed the House. Check out Twitter and see all those comments from people who say #IAmAPreexistingCondition. But what do Trump and the gang care? Polls were already showing people wanted changes to Obamacare and don't throw it in the trash. The Republicans said they were waiting seven long years to see Obamacare in the Dumpster. So what if many untruths are attached?
When you live by the lie, what difference does it make?
"Mr. Trump, in particular, has been spreading misinformation and lies about health care, arguing that the legislation would lower costs while guaranteeing that people with pre-existing health conditions could get affordable health insurance," the New York Times said in an editorial.
As the bill goes to the Senate, many are watching, chomping at the bit,
The AARP is one. It represents 38 million people.
AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond said the organization is "deeply disappointed" that the House passed a "deeply flawed bill."
She said the bill puts at risk 25 million "older adults with pre-existing conditions, such as cancer and diabetes, who would likely find health care unaffordable or unavailable to them." LeaMond also pointed to the "age tax on us as we age, harming millions of American families with health insurance, forcing many to lose coverage or pay thousands of dollars more for health care."
"We promised to hold members of Congress accountable for their vote on this bill," she said.
← Like the Spinning Earth, 'March for Science' Keeps Going with 'Week of Action' (photo: Earth Network, Riccardo Savi)
More to the Story: Annals of Emergency Medicine Halts Urgent Care Study Publication Over Data in Controversial Decision →


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50-100 miles depending on usual factors.
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It was cold. Of course it was cold. Now though, I could feel the cold.
Feeling returned to my body, and a faint light was starting to filter in through my closed eyelids. I was waking up. Thoughts filled my mind. I was shivering, hungry, thirsty and quite stiff. A hum vibrated through the soft plastic beneath my bare flesh.
I opened my eyes, which took some time to adjust to the light. As my vision cleared, I felt a click and saw the transparent lid of my cryo-tube lifting upward. Warm air rushed in. I stopped shivering. I heard the sounds of movement all around me; I heard gruff voices not far away, coughs and groans, shuffling plastic.
Sitting up, I saw dozens of other men doing the same, looking as groggy as I felt. I heard one young man asking for a few more minutes of sleep. I laughed at that – we had slept for nearly ten years.
A door whooshed open at the far end of the chamber, and a uniformed man entered, a member of the command crew.
A few men groaned at that statement – I guess that they had travelled via cryo-sleep before and already knew about the "Mandatory Replenishment Meal". I took a quick sonic shower and donned my new utility coveralls, then discovered the reason for their complaint. The M.R.M. was rich in vitamins, calories and everything we needed after a long cryo-sleep, but was greatly lacking in flavor.
As I ate, I looked around the commissary. There were about three hundred of us, both men and women, which represented the first of ten waves of sleepers. Of course, the vast majority were young like me, barely out of our teens.
Young people make the best colonists. We don't leave much behind, especially the single ones like myself. We have more years in us to help build up the colony's infrastructure. We're more likely to start families. Many hands make light work, as they say. There's lots of work to do starting up a new colony.
I struck up a conversation with the pretty young woman seated across from me. She sounded as excited as I was about the opportunities ahead. It would be hard work, but it was better than living like sardines back on Old Earth or one of the orbital habs. Her enthusiastic chatter helped me endure the M.R.M.
As we were herded out of the commissary toward the shuttle bay, I walked beside the young woman, who had introduced herself as Oriana. I managed to secure a pair of seats for us at the front of the shuttle's passenger cabin, near the forward viewport.
I felt a lurch as the shuttle left its bay. Startled, Oriana nervously reached out to take my hand. I smiled. The viewport filled with stars and the night-side of the planet below. We descended rapidly, the sleek shuttle cutting through the clouds. I could see the dim outlines of mountains speeding past far below.
The horizon took on a reddish hue, slowly brightening into a full sunrise. I gazed in awe at the unspoiled beauty of the woodlands revealed in the growing light. I looked over at Oriana and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. I knew the future – our future – was as bright as this new dawn.


Welcome to the South Dakota Retired School Personnel site. Designed by retired school personnel for retired school personnel, the site offers you a variety of options. To access your desired location, find the menu at the top of the page and select. If you don't see what you're looking for, click the "MORE..." option! Since the site is created and maintained by novice web designers, we ask both your patience and suggestions!! Thanks for visiting, and know you are loved!
to be voted on at the convention.


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Exploits and vulnerabilities
FragAttack: New Wi-Fi vulnerabilities that affect… basically everything
Posted: May 12, 2021 by Pieter Arntz
A researcher has uncovered a set of vulnerabilities in the way Wi-Fi and connected devices handle data packet fragmentation and aggregation.
A new set of vulnerabilities with an aggressive name and their own website almost always bodes ill. The name FragAttack is a contraction of fragmentation and aggregation attacks, which immediately indicates the main area where the vulnerabilities were found.
The vulnerabilities are mostly in how Wi-Fi and connected devices handle data packets, and more particularly in how they handle fragments and frames of data packets. As far as the researcher is aware every Wi-Fi product is affected by at least one vulnerability.
The researcher that uncovered the Wi-Fi vulnerabilities, some of which have existed since 1997, is Mathy Vanhoef. The vulnerabilities he discovered affect all modern Wi-Fi security protocols, including the latest WPA3 specification. You may remember Vanhoef as one of the researchers behind the KrackAttacks weaknesses in the WPA2 protocol. As Vanhoef puts it:
"it stays important to analyze even the most well-known security. Additionally, it shows that it's essential to regularly test Wi-Fi products for security vulnerabilities, which can for instance be done when certifying them."
Packet fragmentation
In each network, there is a maximum size to the chunks of data that can be transmitted on a network layer, called the MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit). Packets can often be larger than this maximum size, so to fit inside the MTU limit each packet can be divided into smaller pieces of data, called fragments. These fragments are later re-assembled to reconstruct the original message.
Wi-Fi networks can use this packet fragmentation to improve throughput. By fragmenting data packets and sending more, but shorter frames, each transmission will have a lower probability of collision with another packet. So, if the content of a message is too large to fit inside a single packet, the content is spread across several fragments, each with its own header.
Just like packets, frames are small parts of a message in the network. A frame helps to identify data and determine the way it should be decoded and interpreted. The main difference between a packet and a frame is the association with the OSI layers. While a packet is the unit of data used in the network layer, a frame is the unit of data used on the layer below it in the OSI model's data link layer. A frame contains more information about the transmitted message than a packet.
The vulnerabilities
The researcher found several implementation flaws that can be abused to easily inject frames into a protected Wi-Fi network. These vulnerabilities can be grouped as follows:
Device-specific flaws
Some Wi-Fi devices accept any unencrypted frame even when connected to a protected Wi-Fi network.
Certain devices accept plaintext aggregated frames that look like handshake messages.
Worse than those, some devices accept broadcast fragments even when sent unencrypted.
Design flaws in the Wi-Fi feature that handling frames
The frame aggregation feature of Wi-Fi uses an "is aggregated" flag that is not authenticated and can be modified by an adversary.
Another design flaw is in the frame fragmentation feature of Wi-Fi. Receivers are not required to check whether every fragment that belongs to the same frame is encrypted with the same key and will reassemble fragments that were decrypted using different keys.
The third design flaw is also in Wi-Fi's frame fragmentation feature. When a client disconnects from the network, the Wi-Fi device is not required to remove non-reassembled fragments from memory.
A few other implementation vulnerabilities that can be used to escalate the flaws mentioned above.
Publicly disclosed computer security flaws are listed in the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database. Its goal is to make it easier to share data across separate vulnerability capabilities (tools, databases, and services). Although each affected codebase normally receives a unique CVE, the agreement between affected vendors was that, in this specific case, using the same CVE across different codebases would make communication easier.
The design flaws were assigned the following CVEs:
CVE-2020-24588: Aggregation attack (accepting non-SPP A-MSDU frames).
CVE-2020-24587: Mixed key attack (reassembling fragments encrypted under different keys).
CVE-2020-24586: Fragment cache attack (not clearing fragments from memory when (re)connecting to a network).
Implementation vulnerabilities that allow the trivial injection of plaintext frames in a protected Wi-Fi network were assigned these CVEs:
CVE-2020-26145: Samsung Galaxy S3 accepting plaintext broadcast fragments as full frames (in an encrypted network).
CVE-2020-26144: Samsung Galaxy S3 accepting plaintext A-MSDU frames that start with an RFC1042 header with EtherType EAPOL (in an encrypted network).
CVE-2020-26140: Alfa Windows 10 driver for AWUS036H accepting plaintext data frames in a protected network.
CVE-2020-26143: Alfa Windows 10 driver 1030.36.604 for AWUS036ACH accepting fragmented plaintext data frames in a protected network.
Other implementation flaws are assigned the following CVEs:
CVE-2020-26139: NetBSD forwarding EAPOL frames even though the sender is not yet authenticated.
CVE-2020-26146: Samsung Galaxy S3 reassembling encrypted fragments with non-consecutive packet numbers.
CVE-2020-26147: Linux kernel 5.8.9 reassembling mixed encrypted/plaintext fragments.
CVE-2020-26142: OpenBSD 6.6 kernel processing fragmented frames as full frames.
CVE-2020-26141: ALFA Windows 10 driver for AWUS036H not verifying the TKIP MIC of fragmented frames.
Vulnerable devices
On the dedicated site the researcher states that
"experiments indicate that every Wi-Fi product is affected by at least one vulnerability and that most products are affected by several vulnerabilities."
The statement is based on testing more than 75 devices, which showed they were all vulnerable to one or more of the discovered attacks.
To mitigate attacks where your router's NAT/firewall is bypassed and devices are directly attacked, you must assure that all your devices will need to be updated. Unfortunately, not all products get regular updates.
Using a VPN can prevent attacks where an adversary is trying to exfiltrate data. It will not prevent an adversary from bypassing your router's NAT/firewall to directly attack devices.
The impact of attacks can also be reduced by manually configuring your DNS server so that it cannot be poisoned.
Graveness of the vulnerabilities
We have been here before. When the KRACK vulnerabilities were revealed a few years ago some people treated it as if it was the end of Wi-Fi. You'll have noticed it wasn't. That doesn't mean it was nothing, either, but a little perspective goes a long way.
The CVEs registered to the FragAttacks have been given a medium severity rating and have CVSS scores sitting between 4.8 to 6.5. Which indicates that the chances of anything resembling remote control is probably too difficult to achieve to make it attractive. The data stealing options however are more imminent and could well be used in specific attacks.
Proof is in the pudding
If you are interested, you can find a demo and a link to a testing tool on the dedicated website. You can also find some FAQs and a pre-recorded presentation made for USENIX Security about these vulnerabilities.
Stay safe, everyone!


Students who have missing work will see an "M" in the assignment category accompanied with a "0.5" score. This is to simulate a student's true grade in class. Students may and are encouraged to make up this missing assignment for a late grade (70% maximum). Students may turn missing work in by the end of each nine weeks to reach the maximum 70% late grade if completed.


Odometer is 15237 miles below market average!
Hello, I would like more information about the 2010 Nissan Altima, stock# 18351B.
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And just like that, the Echo Fox team grows even smaller as fighting game legend Justin Wong announced his departure from the team early Tuesday evening.
"I'm here to announce I am currently a free agent and I have not resigned with @echofoxgg," he tweeted. "They are an amazing team and wish them the best but I want to see what other opportunities are out there. DMs are open for everyone. Please spread the word would love to find a new home."
Justin was one of the three remaining fighting game players under the Echo Fox banner after they parted ways with the majority of their acquired players last year.
Momochi, Punk, JDCR, Scar, Saint, Choco Blanka and Theo were amongst those whose contracts were not renewed by former NBA star Rick Fox's eSports team last year. In addition, Echo Fox also released their entire Gears of War team and their League of Legends head coach in October.
Echo Fox sprung into the fighting game scene with a massive acquisition back in January of 2017 wherein they sponsored some of the absolute best competitors in Street Fighter 5, Mortal Kombat X, Super Smash Bros. Melee and then Tekken 7 at a later date.