Having been a writer for nearly thirty years, I am fortunate in having a large collection of published stories.
Sometimes funny, sometimes painful, they are mostly two-minute reads with a moral and a message.
I've added a sample of them here to whet your appetite and a new story will be added every month.
You can click on the heart to 'Like' or click on the speech bubble to 'Comment', located under each story title.
I hope you return to read a little more about Things I Wish I Had Known.
Feel free to share on Facebook by posting the story as a link.


FRANKLIN, Tenn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–BioMimetic Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: BMTI), a biotechnology company specializing in the development and commercialization of innovative drug-device combination products to promote the healing of musculoskeletal injuries and diseases, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tentatively scheduled an Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Devices Panel meeting on May 12, 2011 to review the Company's Premarket Approval (PMA) application for Augment™ Bone Graft for the treatment of foot and ankle fusions in the U.S. If the panel determines the product's benefits outweigh any potential risks, the Company expects approval of Augment by the FDA within three to six months after the panel date.
Confirmation and details of the meeting will be published in the Federal Register approximately six to eight weeks prior to the scheduled meeting date. Please note that until this panel meeting is announced in the Federal Register, it is considered tentative and could be postponed or cancelled. The Federal Register notice will be available at the following website:http://www.fda.gov/RegulatoryInformation/Dockets/FR/default.htm.
BioMimetic Therapeutics (NASDAQ: BMTI) is a biotechnology company specializing in the development and commercialization of innovative drug-device combination products to promote the healing of musculoskeletal injuries and diseases, including orthopedic, spine and sports injury applications. All products developed by BioMimetic are based upon recombinant human platelet-derived growth factor (rhPDGF-BB) platform technology, which is a synthetic form of PDGF, one of the body's principal agents to stimulate and direct healing and regeneration. Through the commercialization of this patented technology, BioMimetic seeks to become the leading company in the field of regenerative medicine by providing new treatment options for the repair of bone, cartilage, tendons and ligaments, thus helping patients recover faster from their orthopedic injuries.
In 2005, BioMimetic received marketing approval from the FDA for its first product, GEM 21S®, as a grafting material for bone and periodontal regeneration. Additionally, BioMimetic Therapeutics has completed and continues to sponsor clinical trials with its three lead product candidates Augment™ Bone Graft, Augment™ Injectable Bone Graft, and Augment™ Rotator Cuff Graft in multiple orthopedic and sports medicine indications including the treatment of foot and ankle fusions, the stimulation of healing of fractures of the wrist, and the surgical treatment of rotator cuff tears. In November 2009, BioMimetic received approval from Health Canada to begin marketing Augment Bone Graft as an alternative to the use of autograft, the current gold standard in bone grafting, in foot and ankle fusion indications in Canada. In May 2010, the Company's Pre-Marketing Approval (PMA) application for the approval of Augment Bone Graft was filed with the FDA, and the Company anticipates approval for this product in the United States in 2011.
For further information contact Kearstin Patterson, director of corporate communications, at 615-236-4419.


Aishwarya Rai Bachchan asked Abhishek to turn down film featuring Priyanka Chopra?
Reports of actress asking her husband to refuse Shonali Bose's next are doing the rounds, but the truth has been revealed.
Abhishek Bachchan and Priyanka Chopra don't share the best equations and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has a small role to play it.
Mumbai: After a close-to-two-year sabbatical from films after 'Housefull 3', Abhishek Bachchan is returning to films with Anurag Kashyap's 'Manmarziyan' which will release in September this year.
However, just when we thought that his career was back on track, comes another hurdle, if latest reports are to anything to go by.
The 'hurdle' in this case is none other than his wife, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, the report claimed.
So reports of Abhishek and Priyanka Chopra doing director Shonali Bose's next, a film based on late teenager Aisha Chaudhary, who writes a book and turns motivational speaker despite pulmonary fibrosis diagnosis, had surfaced earlier.
The film will reportedly also star Zaira Wasim.
Also read: Not Priyanka but Aishwarya opposite Abhishek in Sahir Ludhianvi biopic?
However, turns out, the report is completely false and Aishwarya has issued a clarification through her team slamming the said article.
The statement read, "Aishwarya Rai Bachchan not too keen for Abhishek Bachchan to sign Shonali Bose's next film has been doing rounds on the internet. To clear the record Abhishek Bachchan has refused this particular film and it's a low down tactic to drag Aishwarya's name in this context."
We wonder if that's the same reason why Abhishek has turned down the film.
■Priyanka refused Sahir Ludhianvi biopic as she didn't want to work with Abhishek?
■Not Priyanka but Aishwarya opposite Abhishek in Sahir Ludhianvi biopic?
■Priyanka, Abhishek Bachchan to play Zaira Wasim's parents in Shonali Bose's next?


text:
WPA Pool/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images
The Queen & Prince Philip Have A Pretty Good Reason For Missing Prince Louis' Christening
by Sophie Hirsh
As the royal family gathers to celebrate the christening of Prince Louis, two very important royals are taking the day off. The 11-week-old royal's great-grandmother and great-grandfather, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, unfortunately won't be at the christening of their newest great-grandson. Here's everything known about why the queen and Prince Philip are missing Prince Louis' christening.
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson told the BBC that the queen decided not to attend the christening "some time ago." Additionally, her abstention is not due to her health, the spokesperson said.
Rebecca English, the Royal Correspondent for the Daily Mail, tweeted further information on the matter. "The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will not be attending today's christening. There's no health issue for the Queen," English alleged on Twitter. "She was working flat out in Scotland last week and has got a busy few days in London with the RAF Centenary event tomorrow and #Trump on Friday."
She also reported that the royal couple have been out of town. "The Queen & Philip have just spent the weekend together in Norfolk. He is remaining there while she travels back to London today," English tweeted. "Her decision not to attend was mutually agreed with William & Kate, while Philip clearly doesn't want to attend public events unless he really has to."
In August 2017, Prince Philip formally retired from public duties, CNN reported. At the time, a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said in a statement shared with CNN that an August 2017 parade would "bring His Royal Highness's individual program to a conclusion, although he may choose to attend certain events, alongside the Queen, from time to time."
And in February 2018, the queen seemingly decided to take a step back as well. When the royal family calendar for the rest of the year was released, royal experts noted that the monarch had significantly cut back her duties, the International Business Times reported. Considering Prince Philip is 97 years old and the queen is 92, it's totally fair that he decided to retire and she decided to scale things back a bit.
However, it's a little surprising that they chose to miss their great-grandson's christening, given that the affair is so private. The only guests attending the christening (other than Prince Louis' parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Catherine of course) are the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall; the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan; Kate's parents, Michael and Carole Middleton; Kate's sister, Pippa Middleton, and her husband James Matthews; Kate's brother, James Middleton; and Prince Louis' godparents and their spouses, according to the official royal website. To me, Prince Philip and the queen stepping back from public duties but not going to this ultra-private christening is a little confusing, but hey, when you're the literal rulers of England, you can get away with whatever you want!
Prince Louis' christening is scheduled for Monday, July 9 at the Chapel Royal, St James's Palace, London, the official royal website noted. The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby, will be christening the little royal, and Matt Holyoak will be the official photographer for the intimate event. The royal website says Holyoak will capture official photographs at Clarence House after the service, which can only mean one thing: more adorable pictures of Prince Louis must be on the way.
Prince William and Kate are also hosting a private tea at Clarence House after the ceremony, where they will serve guests a tier of cake taken from their literal wedding cake, the royal website reported. Hmm... maybe the real reason the queen and Prince Philip skipped today's festivities are because they didn't want to be subjected to eating 7-year-old fruit cake.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Now towards the end of the year, it is time to reflect upon our adventures, and the year did start amazing. Seeing gorillas in the wildlife was something I was hoping to do for a while and having found cheap flights we decided to do it. This was a great treat, that will never be forgotten.
This time, we decided to do the trip how we like it. In sub-Saharan Africa going minimal and basic is the most rewarding way to travel. So we packed our camping gear and caught our flight. Less than two hours after landing we were already on the long bus ride, and looking out of the window to get some through-the-window-peanuts. That mission was a success and nostalgia kicked in. We were back!
Though this time we were time constrained, we did travel slow (despite that first hectic day). Having no plan, apart from a gorilla trek proved to be the right choice. I could go on about how grand the experience with gorillas was and how grateful we were to able to be in their presence for that short hour but who wants to read about bragging (I'd rather do this in my book), you are here for the budget.
As I mentioned we camped, apart from few occasions where there were no official camping options. Camping in Uganda is not much cheaper if it is cheaper at all. Local rooms in small villages were most of the time cheaper. But to tell you the truth, there was a moment where we had a bed and I was debating sleeping on the floor instead. Regarding transport we took local buses, matatus (a van packed with as many people that could uncomfortably fit) and few taxis (motorcycle rides). The food varied; we ate fruits from local markets, street food such as rolex (omelet wrapped in a chapati), local food joints, Nkuruba lake lodge, but we mostly ate at our accommodation. We filtered water and drank beers on almost daily basis. As we do not normally repeat activities that we've done in other neighboring countries, we opted out from going on a game drive (safari). But we were lucky to see an elephant on one of our matatu ride, a hippos near our campsite, and abundant visits from different primates. However we did splurge on two activities that would bust most peoples budget; gorilla and chimp trek. We put those cost separately as not everyone would be able or want to afford these. Although the chimp trek was cheap.
Our estimated budget for 14 days in Uganda was 20.00 GBP per person per day, however the two big activities were not included in the estimation.


Last week we told you about easel.ly for creating beautiful infographics in your browser, but we had a few gripes — it didn't let you manipulate data or change color schemes, two things that are vital to custom infographics. Infogr.am, also a tool in beta, lets you do both of those things and more — perfect for a journalist, blogger or social media editor on a deadline.
The tool is dead simple, and with preset fonts, colors and templates, it's hard to make something that doesn't look great. See my quick example below (which, by the way, doesn't display real data on Twitter followers).
Infogr.am has a drag and drop interface that lets you slide elements — charts, quotes, titles, text, images — onto a canvas. They currently have three themes for you to choose from.
The editor view for creating charts lets you manipulate data through a spreadsheet. You can also import your own data as an excel or CSV file. You can create line charts, bar charts, pie charts and matrixes.
You can also upload your own elements like logos and icons if you want to spice it up or add something unique.
And, even better than generating a static graphic, infogr.am generates embed code that you can plop into your blog, which makes your infographic interactive (information hovers over data points), and gives the option of allowing others to also embed the graphic on their blogs. See more examples of how infogr.am is being used.
Know of any other visual storytelling tools that we haven't written about? Let us know in the comments.


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text:
Making Homes Happen
The Housing Continuum
Community Housing Sector
Counties Manukau land proposed for housing
Published: Thursday 7 July 2016
Ten hectares of Counties Manukau Health land is being considered for the Government's Crown land housing programme, with consultation starting today, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.
"I have been in discussions with Counties Manukau Health about its large, vacant land holdings in South Auckland. I welcome their decision to publicly consult on releasing the north-western corner of this site, on Kerrs Road. There is a strong link between health wellbeing and housing, and it makes no sense for this land to be vacant when the area has such high housing need.
"If Counties Manukau Health recommends releasing this land after the consultation process, the Government will look to buy it at fair market price for the Crown land programme. This will provide capital for the district health board to invest in other health services, while also adding land on which the Government can facilitate the building of new homes," Dr Smith says.
"This 10ha site would have the capacity for about 250 homes, and any housing development would need to contribute to the Government's objective of increasing the supply of social and affordable housing. The specific requirements around the proportion of these will be determined after a decision is made. We are also exploring the possibility of developing the land for housing in conjunction with local iwi."
Go here to read more
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Here's a roundup of family-friendly Dia de los Muertos celebrations in the Milwaukee area.
Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is at the same time as Halloween every year.
But it's more than just another way to celebrate Halloween. According to Milwaukee's Latino Arts Gallery, the Mexican celebration is a "day to celebrate, remember and prepare special foods in honor of those who have departed."
Traditionally, spirits of the dead are thought to visit their families from Oct. 31- Nov. 2, and people welcome their arrival by making altars and placing offerings (ofrendas) on them — things like yellow marigolds and items and foods in the shape of skulls.
There are several places to celebrate Dia de los Muertos in the Milwaukee area. Here are some of them.
When: Sunday, Oct. 14, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Price: Activities are free with museum admission, which is $19 for adults and free for kids 12 and under.
The art museum has Kohl's Art Generation Family Sundays several times a year, and the Dia de los Muertos celebration is a tradition.
Kids will be able to learn about traditions and symbols from local artists and through hands-on art activities. There will be Mexican folkloric dance to watch, as well as a student art exhibition by students from Carolton Elementary.
Families will also be able to create their own art projects, including sugar skull masks and skeleton dolls, as well as contributions to a community ofrenda and butterfly mural.
When: Friday, Oct. 26, 6-9 p.m.
Where: Mitchell Park Domes, 524 S. Layton Blvd.
There will be celebrations throughout the Domes, including candlelight, orange marigolds and colorful decorations in the Desert Dome and a mariachi band and dancing in the Show Dome.
There will also be free crafts for kids (including creating artistic marigolds and painting sugar skulls), as well as the opportunity (for $5) to build a skull garden and get photos with costumed characters from the movie "Coco."
Local Mexican restaurants will be in attendance, selling food and beverages, and every child will receive a free treat bag.
When: Saturday, Oct. 27, 1-4 p.m.
Where: Kenosha Public Museum, 5500 First Ave.
The Dia de los Muertos Celebration at the Kenosha Public Museum will include performances by Ballet Folkloria Nacional and a bilingual scavenger hunt throughout the museum.
Spanish students from Bradford High School will also be on hand to teach kids how to make an ofrenda, and kids can also create their own paper flowers.
When: Oct. 26 through Nov. 16, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Where: Latino Arts Gallery, 1028 S. 9th St.
The Latino Arts Gallery has an annual Day of the Dead exhibition, which includes a "dizzying array of ofrendas" by several artists.
There's an opening reception on Nov. 2 at 5 p.m.
When: Tuesday, Oct. 30, 4:30-6:30 p.m.
The library will be celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with a Dia de los Muertos celebration where kids will be able to create their own masks and paper marigolds.


For this challenge I crocheted this beautiful Afghan throw for my sister for her birthday. I fell in love with this design the moment I saw it. I love the 3D flowers. I used the same yarn in the same color as Ruby did on the video.
I just finished it last night after almost 2 weeks of non stop crocheting. Her birthday is March 3rd, however, it will be a few days late. I under estimated the time I it would take.
WOW!! It's beautiful! I love the color combo and Gorgeous flowers.
Your sister will LOVE it! I do!!
Nana, this is just gorgeous! The 3D flowers are beautiful! Wow, I am sure your sister will love it and treasure it for a lifetime! What a sweet and thoughtful gift!
Crocheted blankets like this become family heirlooms. I love the large white squares with popped up colorful flowers. Nana, you have so many talents. Thank you for sharing.
WOW WOW WOW!! This is gorgeous!!!! What a beautiful color combo!!!!
Oh my this is so beautiful! I just love your beautiful crochet work!
WOW This is so BEAUTIFUL!!! Your sister will love this!!!!!! Have a great day.
This is absolutely gorgeous, I just love it!!!! You did a wonderful job and made it fast! Your sister will LOVE IT!!!!


text:
Harbor commissioners ask staff to consider…
Harbor commissioners ask staff to consider solutions for Lucy, the harbor goose
By Jory John |
PUBLISHED: March 23, 2010 at 12:00 am | UPDATED: September 11, 2018 at 12:00 am
SANTA CRUZ – A Santa Cruz goose is at center stage of an emotionally charged dispute.
More than 50 people attended the monthly harbor commission meeting Tuesday evening, to discuss the fate of "Lucy," a domesticated goose that has lived at the Santa Cruz Small Craft Harbor for 22 years. While almost all in the standing-room only crowd were in support of the goose, calling her "part of the color" of the harbor and "an important artifact," a case was made by one concerned resident that Lucy could potentially be a health hazard.
Dan McFadden, a member of the Santa Cruz Rowing Club, who has been rowing in the harbor since the mid-70s, initially brought the issue to the commission"s attention. In a letter written to the commission, McFadden cited Section 221 of the harbor"s regulation, which states, "It shall be unlawful for pets to roam freely anywhere on harbor property."
McFadden – who came to the meeting with photo enlargements of goose droppings on the rowing dock, where he rents space – said contrary to popular opinion, the goose hasn"t lived on the dock for the past 22 years. He said that it was relocated to the dock within the past three years. His comment was met with boos from the crowd.
"I"ve been using this dock and I know when the goose moved over there," he said.
McFadden, former assistant chancellor for public affairs at UCSC and retired San Jose deputy city manager, said he knew the subject was causing tension, but said people needed to take responsibility for the domesticated goose.
"It"s an emotional thing," McFadden said. "I knew that when I raised the issue. I understand you all love the pet, but I"m a responsible pet owner. You all care about the input – you want to feed the goose – but you don"t care about the output."
McFadden said that "Do Not Feed" signs weren"t a solution, as they produced no tangible results. He said that he consistently cleans the dock every time he"s there.
"It"s a huge mess down there," he said. "We don"t need anymore signs. The people who want to feed the goose ignore the signs. The staff ignores the people who feed the goose. If it was a wild goose, you wouldn"t hear anything from me, but this is somebody"s pet. They are keeping it on the dock. It"s like having your neighbor keep their pet on your property. I have nothing against the goose as long as the goose is covered, as long as people are taking responsibility for it."
After acknowledging the sizeable turnout in the room, committee Chairman Jeff Martin asked for a show of hands of who was pro-Lucy. Almost all in the room raised their hands in acknowledgement. Due to time constraints, Martin asked the crowd to speak only if they had something to say that was unlike a previous comment. About 10 people spoke in favor of the goose, before McFadden had his turn. That included 84-year-old Ursula Grunwald, who has been feeding Lucy most days for the past 22 years.
"This goose is here because somebody dumped her here," Grunwald said. "I think that Lucy has many friends here. Let beauty live." Her comment was met by applause.
Santa Cruz resident Pat Schauss, who lives near the harbor, said she would be devastated to see Lucy have to go somewhere else.
"It"s just heartbreaking to think that the goose may have to fend for itself," Schauss said. "I don"t think that it would be at all safe to move her from her spot."
Santa Cruz Rowing Club Board Member Tom Dexel said the solution to the goose problem seemed simple enough to him.
"It is a relatively current problem," Dexel said. "I think moving the food down farther will prevent it from hanging out around the dock. The goose will go where the food is and that will solve the problem."
Other remarks made about the goose dealt with its safety, the fact that it"s docile and that it would have trouble fending for itself. A few said that they specifically look for the goose every time they walk through the harbor area.
While most were on the side of keeping Lucy where she is, Santa Cruz resident David Heintz seconded McFadden"s opinion about sanitation.
"It"s a pet and the people who are taking care of her should take responsibility for that pet," Heintz said. "We feed the goose. We don"t feed the seals."
After about 30 minutes, the matter was tabled for later discussion. Commissioner Bill Lee said that he didn"t think it needed to be on next month"s agenda.
"My recommendation is that we turn this over to the staff for now," Lee said.
Vice chairman Reed Geisreiter concurred, saying that the staff will work with the public, to find the most appropriate solution to this matter, but that it shouldn"t be on next month"s agenda.
Jory John


Friday, 9 February 2019 – The After Action Report on the performance of the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) in response to the impact from hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017 is ready for review by Cabinet.
The report includes data from a number of evaluations conducted by external entities and summarizes key findings. It also provides a detailed analysis of what actions were taken, why the actions were taken and how future responses could be improved.
Director, Department of Disaster Management Ms. Sharleen DaBreo MBE explained that this type of review is in keeping with international best practices and is executed following any major disaster.
The findings and recommendations have already been incorporated into the Territory's sector level strategies, plans and programmes including the 2019-2015 Comprehensive Disaster Management Strategic Framework. The Virgin Islands Emergency Management Accreditation is expected to be renewed in 2020 and all efforts will be made to address the findings before this time.
The Department of Disaster Management will monitor the implementation and achievements and continue to provide reports to Cabinet. It is expected that the Cabinet approved report will be published during the first quarter of the year.


Is Invincible a good album ?
Article about Michael's performance of I Shot The Sheriff.
NEW clip of Sheryl Crow talking about Michael.
Gaël Clichy (a soccer player) praises Michael.
Odell Beckham Jr (a football player) got an MJ tattoo on his leg.
Thriller has reached 400M+ views on YouTube.
Off The Wall is #45 on the US ITunes charts.
Did Michael speak any poems other then Planet Earth?
Post your fave song (or part of a song) where Michael uses his upper register.
MJ HIStory concert tickets selling on Ticket Master for THIS year?!
Michael made out of beads.
Did MJ exploit his potential as a dance performer to the fullest?
NEW never before seen footage of Michael & Ryan White.
Camila Cabello (a former member of 5th Harmony) covers MITM.
Whatzupwitu is the best shortfilm/music video that Michael has ever been in.
Who did they Prank Call?


text:
Q: How to set value from a query to an input textbox When a user clicks edit of a specific row in a table, I want the input textboxes in the same page to be filled with that row's details. I tried this but it did not work.
<cfquery name="getDataForEdit" datasource="dsn">
  select * from usercardetails where id = '#url.id#'
</cfquery>
<cfoutput>
  <cfset #form.username# = #getDataForEdit.username#>

</cfoutput>

A: Try this as an example to get you going....
<cfquery name="getDataForEdit" datasource="dsn">
     select * from usercardetails where id = '#url.id#'
</cfquery>

<cfoutput>

 <cfif getDataForEdit.recordcount is 1>

  <form action="index.cfm" method="post">

Username<input type="text" id="username" name="username" value="#getDataForEdit.username#" />

<input type="submit" id="butty01" name="butty01" value="Go" />

  </form>

 <cfelseif getDataForEdit.recordcount is 0>

No records found

 <cfelse>

An error occurred (Multiple records with this ID found)

 </cfif>

</cfoutput>

I've put comments in the code around some optional improvements.
Also note that...
<cfset #form.username# = #getDataForEdit.username#>

will be causing you problems.
<cfset username = getDataForEdit.username>

Will create/set a variable username equal to the value of the username column in your query. The # tags are not necessary in this context. # prints out the value of a variable, so you could have done this...
<cfset username = "#getDataForEdit.username#">

Which would print the value of the username column into a string of text (the only thing in the string being the value), and the string of text would have been assigned to the variable username.
form

is a reserved word, as it is a structure (it's worth looking up structures) that contains all of the form variable data posted to your page. You can inspect form by using cfdump
<cfoutput><cfdump var="#form#" label="form" expand="No" />
</cfoutput>

To print out one of the values inside form you can do
#form.username#

So (and very confusingly when you're a beginner)...
<cfset #form.username# = #getDataForEdit.username#>

Will create a variable with the name that corresponds to the value of the form field username posted to your page, and fill it with the username from your query. You really don't want that.
Keep at it. Once you get a few basic concepts sorted Coldfusion is a lovely language to code in.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


A week or so later a full-page illustration by a staff artist appeared in Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper (above colorized) with the title "A Scene at Long Beach." It showed a group at the beach, and although the people were not identified, the image was used to illustrate a society article about Wilde and Sam Ward. There seems little doubt, as Maud Howe Elliott also implied in a caption to the same illustration in her 1938 memoir Uncle Sam Ward and his Circle, that the men depicted were intended to be Sam and Oscar.
So much seems apparent. But it is also possible to identify the young lady in the picture who is admiring Wilde, as well as the little girl nearby, her daughter.
In 1882 Alice Pike Barney and her family spent the summer at New York's Long Beach Hotel, and she and her five-year old daughter, Natalie, had a chance meeting with Wilde.
In her memoir Aventures de L'esprit (1929) Natalie Barney recalled what she nominates as her First Adventure: the story of how Wilde scooped her up as she ran past him fleeing a group of small boys, and held her out of the boys' reach before sitting her down on his knee to tell her a story, what she recalled as "a wonderful tale." Thus, a friendship developed with Natalie's mother, Alice.
Alice's husband had abandoned her at the shore and returned to New York (as was his wont), so she and Natalie were able to spend the next day with Oscar on the beach. The acquaintance turned out to be precipitous for the mother and prescient for the daughter.
For Alice, the mother, her conversations with Wilde changed the course of her life. Oscar inspired Alice to pursue art seriously despite her husband's disapproval. As a direct result, she would go on to study under Carolus-Duran and James McNeill Whistler, and later wrote and performed in several plays and an opera, working to promote the arts in Washington, D.C. Many of her paintings are now in the Smithsonian American Art Museum. For Wilde, whose stated aim on his tour was to introduce the arts to America, this achievement, unknown to him, must be regarded as a great success for his mission.
Natalie, the daughter, grew up to be Natalie Clifford Barney, a playwright, poet and novelist resident in Paris, during which time she served on committees "that commemorated both [Wilde's] birth and death." . As early as 1900, she was openly lesbian and published love poems to women under her own name, before going on to found a salon of decadent Modernists on the Left Bank for more than 60 years. Within this clique Natalie Barney conducted many non-monogamous relationships, but the intrigue is in the fact that at least two of her lovers had Wildean connections.
The first was a brief affair with Olive Custance, the future wife of Wilde's own lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, whom Douglas had married after Wilde's death. Through this relationship Natalie came to know Douglas quite well, befriending him during his visit to Washington DC, and later becoming godparent to Douglas' and Olive's only child, Raymond.
Not to be outdone, Oscar's brother, Willie Wilde, now adds to the complexity.
In 1891 he had married Mrs Frank Leslie, the proprietor of the very newspaper that published the illustration 'A Scene at Long Beach'. A nice little conjunction. But the intrigue is that much later, in 1927, Natalie Barney met and cohabited with Dorothy Ierne Wilde, known as Dolly Wilde, Willie Wilde's only daughter from his second marriage: Oscar's only niece. The relationship was a passionate one for both Natalie and Dolly and continued until the latter's death in 1941.
Perhaps the most intrigue is provided by Oscar himself who, after having been present at the birth of these intertwined relationships, died not knowing anything about them.
The Pavillon at 20, Rue Jacob where Natalie Barney's salon was held for 60 years.
 Maud Howe Elliott (1854-1948), whom the press had erroneously linked romantically with Wilde, was the daughter of Sam Ward's sister, Julia Ward Howe, the prominent abolitionist, social activist, poet, and author of The Battle Hymn of the Republic.
 William Henry Hurlbert (1827—1895), editor-in-chief of the New York newspaper The World.
 Noted in Truly Wilde: The Unsettling Story of Dolly Wilde, Oscar's Unusual Niece, by Joan Schenkar. Virago, 2000. p 151. Fully recounted in Wild Heart: A Life: Natalie Clifford Barney and the Decadence of Literary Paris, by Suzanne Rodriguez, HarperCollins, 2003. pp 30-33.
Another good one! Thank you.
Very very nice job, John, as usual. I love to see the name Carolus-Duran for he was the father-in-law of the great comic French playwright, Georges Feydeau who is right up there with Moliere and Wilde when it comes to writing comic plays and – raised in Paris – he has so much heart. I have read his entire works and my sheets are still stained from the tears of laughter that tumbled down over my cheeks. I may read all his plays again, not to mention those of the other two playwrights.
I think Ierne may be a Roman name for Ireland.
Again, John, your work is invaluable and most interseting. I look forward to it as to a real treat. I plan to save this posting of yours for a while and enjoy it again and again. You are remarkable – and those marvelous photos! A good scholarly mind – you must be a helluva poker player – or chess.
I'm not bad at Hearts.
You must have a wonderful love life then!
A young girl whom Oscar Wilde met on vacation in 1882 became the lover of Wilde's future niece and also had an affair with Wilde's own lover's future wife. Confused? Then read on.
John, this is an excellent connect-the-dots. To take this off-camera (so to speak), is it not also true that Mrs. Frank Leslie (perhaps already Mrs. William Wilde) was the one who suggested to famed Gilbert & Sullivan producer, Richard D'Oyly Carte, that he bring Oscar Wilde to America? Allegedly she attended an opening performance of Patience in NYC and suggested to Carte that he might consider introducing the real 'Bunthorne' to America.
1881	9	22	Colonel W.F. Morse opens Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience in the Standard Theatre, Broadway, NY. Morse, at the suggestion of Mrs Frank Leslie (1836.6.5-1914) forms the opinion that a personal appearance by OW would boost attendances. 177 performances.
1889	7	19	William Rene Oliver de Lorncourt, Marquis de Leuville and Mrs. Frank Leslie, at vestry office, Mount Street, Grosvenor Square, declare their intention to marry.
1890	7	10	William Rene Oliver de Lorncourt, Marquis de Leuville and Mrs. Frank Leslie call at the Registrar in London and take out a marriage licence. She denies this in two weeks time.
1890	7	24	Mrs. Frank Leslie denies calling at the Registrar in London [1890.7.10] to take out a marriage licence with William Rene Oliver de Lorncourt, Marquis de Leuville, and he does not contradict her.
1891	8	10	The Morning Call (San Francisco, Calif.): "The report that William Wilde, brother of the sage-green esthetic, Oscar Wilde, is about to marry Mrs. Frank Leslie quivers so tremulously upon the blanc mange of silly gossip as to be hardly worth repeating, except as a test of public credulity." Mrs. Frank Leslie (1836.6.5-1914).
1891	10	4	Willie Wilde (1852-1899.3.13) and wealthy widow Mrs. Frank Leslie (nee Miriam Folline 1836.6.5-1914) are married in the Church of the Strangers, 229 Mercer St., NYC. She is proprietor of the Frank Leslie Publishing Co. (NY) and is first to suggest OW's US lecture tour. Frank Leslie (1821-1880.1.10).
Mrs Leslie was a helluva girl. Read her book about the trip she and friends took from Manhattan to the Sierras aboard a luxury train. She whipped her late husband's newspaper empire into shape, too and she made at least a very famous couple of quotes about Willie Wilde.
As JD's chronology implies Willie did not become "Mr Frank Leslie" until 1891, a decade after Wilde's tour was mooted, and but you're right she was instrumental in the idea of Wilde visit.
Fantastic, thank you both for the detailed clarification. I didn't realize William Wilde married here in NYC. Did they maintain homes in both London and New York? I should know this, but where was brother Wille at the time of the trials?
Walter, to think I took you supping in the Slaughtered Lamb and failed to mention we were around the corner from the very spot in Mercer Street where they were married. A marriage that didn't last. Willie was back in London at the time of the trials.
Of course, Willie probably not able to pass sobriety tests to hold his own in Mrs. Leslie's social circles. When next in NYC, I'll buy lunch and we can re-trace some of the steps.
To be fair Peter, I don't think Walter was joking about Willie, and certainly not randomly towards the Irish. Willie Wilde's drinking was an unfortunate feature of his marriage to Mrs Leslie, and he eventually died from complications related to alcoholism.
Thanks for this informative article. I've always wanted to see photos of Dolly and Natalie and a more candid one of Douglas than what is usually shown when he is mentioned with Wilde. Very interesting.
Thanks Jack. For more on Nat and Dolly see the books cited at the end of the article.
Ah yes, you had touched on this briefly during the tour and I was thinking just the other day about wanting to know more details before I shared that tale with some colleagues. Well timed! It's all so endlessly fascinating how people are linked together, isn't it?


In 2015 the concentration of carbon dioxide was 400 ppm, for the first time ever. The atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) was 543 ppm.
Figure 1. Atmospheric Concentrations of GHGs in 2015 and Radiative Forcing from 1979-2015. Source: World Meteorological Organization.
In this post I will catch up with the Greenhouse Gas Bulletin published by the World Meteorological Society in October, 2016. It concerns atmospheric GHGs during 2015.
For the first time ever, the global concentration of carbon dioxide averaged 400 ppm, while the concentration of methane rose to 1,845 ppb, and the concentration of nitrous oxide rose to 328.0 ppb. These represent growth from 2014 of 0.58%, 0.60%, and 0.31%, respectively. The concentration of carbon dioxide is now 144% of what it was in 1750, while methane is 256% and nitrous oxide is 121%. The data are shown in Figure 1.
The report does not calculate the carbon dioxide equivalent of the three combined, but simply multiplying methane and nitrous oxide by their global warming potentials yields a combined carbon dioxide equivalent of 543 (using the 100-year global warming potentials published in the IPCC 4th AR).
Radiative forcing (the warming effect) of these GHGs was approximately 3.0 watts per meter in 2015 above 1750, compared to approximately 1.7 in1979.
Figure 2. Source: Earth Systems Research Laboratory, 2017c.
Figure 2 shows the recent data on carbon dioxide concentration as measured at the Mauna Loa Observatory. The red line represents the actual measured value, and the black line represents the trend. This location is often taken as the best place to measure atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations because it is in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, far away from large local sources of carbon dioxide, high in the atmosphere, and buffeted by almost constant trade winds. The chart shows that the concentration of carbon dioxide surges each winter, then ebbs each summer. This seasonal effect is due to the summer greening of the Northern Hemisphere, where the bulk of the world's land mass is. Once it has greened, the vegetation absorbs carbon dioxide and converts it to oxygen as part of the process of photosynthesis, pulling it out of the atmosphere. After the vegetation goes dormant during the winter, it does not absorb carbon dioxide, and the concentration increases.
The reading for May, 2017 was 409.65 ppm.
Earth Systems Research Laboratory, 2017 a.
Figure 3 shows the same data going back to the late 1950s. Though the concentration of carbon dioxide surges and ebbs each year, you can see that the trend is irrevocably upward. The peak each winter is higher than the previous winter's high, and the low point each summer is higher than the previous summer's low. At no time has this trend ever reversed, in fact it has never even slowed. If anything, the trend is curving upward, meaning it is increasing faster.
In the next post I will discuss what these findings mean.
Earth System Research Laboratory. 2017a. Full Mauna Loa CO2 Record. Downloaded 2017-06-15 from https://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends.
Earth System Research Laboratory. 2017b. Mauna Loa CO2 Annual Mean Data. Downloaded 2017-06-15 from https://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends.
Earth System Research Laboratory. 2017c. Recent Monthly Average Mauna Loa CO2. Downloaded 2017-06-15 from https://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends.
By mogreenstats in Climate Change, Greenhouse Gas Emissions on 2017/07/06 .


The SEO Storm is Coming! Are you Penguin 2.0 Ready?
Most website owners, rely on the perks of organically generated traffic from the major search engines like Google. For some it is a matter of life & death for their business to appear at the top of Google search results and every extra upward placement is merrily celebrated.
SEO has become one of the hottest selling products for the past decade and no wonder! Many SEO improvement companies use all kinds of gray-hat/black-hat tricks to bring their customers to the top of Google results (if they could).
But things have changed. What was once perceived as healthy indicators of relevant website content are now considered to be negative influences (from a SE ranking algorithm point of view).
In 2011 Google released the search engine ranking algorithm Panda. Its main purpose (besides many others) was to increase user experience and to demote sites of low quality and ad-filled content while promoting the opposite. One of the major influencing factors that contributed to positive website ranking was a focus on online social interactions. Soon enough 1000's of questionable online forums and social hubs (mostly with scraped content) sprouted to generate that which the algorithm perceived as high value and legitimate; and offered millions of "quality" links to sites in need of (and who paid for) the SEO boost.
It all changed again in April 2012 when a new algorithm called Penguin 1.0 rolled out. That by itself changed the lives of web owners overnight. Many legitimate websites took a major nose dive in their ranking. Mainly because of the high numbers of inbound links from the above-mentioned link farms. Once considered beneficial, legal SEO practice is now detrimental and the previously glorified rich presence of relevant keywords contained in your site was now labeled as "keyword-stuffing" – and that too was punished by a rank drop.
This was a major blow to website owners who purchased SEO services from 3rd party "SEO specialists", and the majority of work done for the betterment of their SEO turned against them. Some websites previously ranked 1st or 2nd with Google plummeted out of sight.
screen and limit the number of outbound links (remember that plain text containing the name of some website could be considered as a "link").
However, the major factor, which for past 12 months seemed to be crucial for ranking, was to ensure high inbound traffic. Good and steady incoming traffic with a low bounce rate seemed to be considered yet another vital sign of healthy website. As usual, SEO experts directed their focus on building elaborate fake traffic generators that could bring their clients tens of thousands seemingly legitimate hits with low bounce rate.
It was puzzling at times to see that local US sites received tens of thousands of seemingly relevant hits per month from India and were climbing the ranking ladder. Will the future ranking algorithm penalize this?
Early in May, 2013 Google's SEO Expert Matt Cutts announced a new version of the current Penguin algorithm – internally called Penguin 2.0. It is expected to take effect in a few weeks and it is already causing beads of cold sweat on many webmaster foreheads.
So if you begin to observe interesting changes in your site's ranking position during the upcoming month or so, just remember to stick with the SEO basics and more than anything else, keep your website content fresh and unique. And, when you receive your next WordPress comment saying "We will get your site on the top of the search engines for $1,000" you bet it could be true, however it may not be on Google, Bing, Yahoo, Dog Pile, Ask, DuckDuckGo or any other coveted search engines.
Also, for those unjustly hit by the last Penguin algorithm Google offered a recovery form to request ranking correction, however forgiveness was not granted to those who clearly violated the new rules. Will this be offered again for the Penguin 2.0 upgrade?


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(aka 'Miss and Out', 'Devil takes the hindmost')
The elimination race is a rolling start bunch race held over a defined number of laps. The race distance is based on the number of riders entered. At a pre-determined interval, usually every two laps (on a 250m track) the last rider to cross the start/finish line is eliminated from the race and must exit the track, until such time as only one rider is left in the race and declared the winner.
On the lap prior, the starter will blow a whistle to indicate that the last rider will be eliminated as riders cross the line on the next lap.
Distance: Varies according to the number of entrants, the number of laps between elimination laps and the neutral laps at the start of the race (if any). For example, a race with 10 entrants and 1 rider eliminated every two laps will be run over 18 laps (note the race ends when the second to last rider is eliminated).
Variations: The number of laps between each elimination laps and the number of neutral laps at the start of the race will vary according to local rules.
Key Rules: You can't pass on the cote d'azure (duckboards) to avoid elimination if you're stuck at the back on the inside!
Tactics: Riders will try and conserve as much energy as possible throughout the race only exerting effort where necessary to avoid elimination. Riders may prefer to stay at the front of the bunch and use more energy throughout to guarantee avoiding elimination, others will use as little energy as possible and stay narrowly ahead of the last rider.
What to watch for: The panic in a rider's eyes when they realise they are boxed in at the bottom of the track and nowhere to go to avoid elimination!


Happy Memorial day weekend everyone! For many this is the start of summer. It's already getting pretty hot here in Florida, I think we are in for a very hot summer this year.
This also is the start of our famous afternoon thunderstorms, so be careful while driving in the afternoon as chances are you'll get surprised by a quick downpour. When that happens remember to turn your lights on, slow down and watch for other drivers who may stop still if the rain gets too hard.
If your driving somewhere this weekend please be careful and give yourself plenty of time as the roads will be packed. Don't drink and drive and watch out for others on the road, including motorcycles.
The theme parks will be full too, maybe even reach capacity with some of them, like the Magic Kingdom. So be prepared for lots of people if you hit the parks.
So I wish everyone a happy Memorial Day weekend and hope you all have a good time and be safe. Just relax, don't plan too much into each day, and be sure to protect yourself from the sun!


You there plastic door. Served it to you more months. But here unexpectedly it fails. How to Apply? In general, about this you read in article.
For sure it may seem unusual, but nonetheless sense ask himself: whether fix plastic door? may profitable will purchase new? Inclined according to, sense ask, how is a new plastic door. For it enough make desired inquiry finder.
First sense find specialist by fix plastic door. This can be done using any finder, eg, mail.ru. If price services for repair will lift - believe task successfully solved. If this option not suitable - then you have repair plastic door own.
So, if you decided own do repair, then in the first instance need learn how repair plastic door. For it one may use finder, or browse old numbers magazines "Himself master", or ask a Question on community.
Think you do not vain spent time and this article help you make repair plastic door. In the next article I will write how repair phone keypad or phone keypad.


Maruti Suzuki India today announced a significant milestone of its iconic brand Swift registering a momentous two million sales landmark since its first launch in India in May 2005. Swift has created a glorious legacy by being the preferred choice of the Indian customers owing to its dynamic features, global styling, sporty, solid and bold stance and power-packed performance.
India's first premium hatchback is constantly being refreshed to match the changing aspirations of its evolving young customers. The third generation Swift launched in the Auto Expo 2018 retains its symbolic character, taking its global design language to the next level. The new Swift is engineered with the best of Suzuki's design capabilities and is built on the innovative 5th generation HEARTECT platform. The platform gives more strength and rigidity and helps to improve the power to weight ratio, leading to better acceleration performance for a peppy and fun to drive experience.
The new Swift achieved the fastest one lakh sales bookings in less than ten weeks – testimony to the stronger connect with customers and its brand lineage. At the same time, Maruti Suzuki increased production of iconic Swift by 45% to 1.39 lakh units during April-Oct 2018-19, as against previous year. This has helped us delight our customers by reducing the waiting period of the car.
The New Age InstaAuto & Two-Wheeler Loan approval by ICICI Bank – Eyeing your dream ride? Go get it now!
Bajaj Qute Quadricycle Roadtest Review – It's Not a Car!
With a great team who are the best in their respective jobs, we aim to keep you abreast of the all the latest happenings in the industry. Brimming with enthusiasm, these livewires are all set to get you the inside masala in the auto world!


I'm a billionaire, sang Travie McCoy. So will we. Meet the young entrepreneurs of AEGEE!
The European School of Entrepreneurship (ESE) was a real pioneer in every sense among all the AEGEE trainings. It was not just the first edition of ESE, but also the topic was uttermost interesting since it did not deal with internal issues as other European Schools. The entrepreneurship and self-employment are also ones of those subject areas which gained more importance in the past years, as it was stated that these can be one of those solutions in one's life which can help to get out of the crisis.
The first time I heard about the European School of Entrepreneurship was in Alicante and I found it an amazingly good idea at the very first moment. Being the part of the biggest interdisciplinary youth association of Europe, I felt the need of different possibilities of self-development, and this European School was perfect to fill the gap.
ESE was a result of a great cooperation: the host local, AEGEE-Catania coordinated the work perfectly, what has been done by the main coordinator, Peppe Gianni was really impressive. The trainers came from AEGEE-Academy, the Youth Unemployment Project, Network Commission and the YoutHub Catania Student Incubator. AEGEE-Catania invited several external speakers which spiced up the entire week and according to the evaluations, the participants found it motivating and incredibly useful.
The more than 20 European young people had a very active week: they could learn about the way of creating business plan out of their business ideas, the way how to sell it to business angels and future costumers (marketing skills, elevator pitch and so forth) and how to maintain the successful operation of an international and multicultural team, how to coach people and how to develop themselves by the help of personal SWOT analysis. They also got extensive knowledge about the finances of a company in order to be prepared to create an entirely feasible business plan what they had to present in the end of the week.
And what was the lesson of the week? That we need definitely more trainings which are dealing with the "outer world"! That week was a perfect sum up for all my Bachelor studies, but it was definitely much more interesting than those boring university lectures and seminars… And last but not least: AEGEE-Catania is one of the best host locals I have ever met, it was a great experience to work with them!


Writing about a topic such as unjust adoption brings out the most deepest of hurtful emotions. It's hard to put anything beautiful into something that is so horribly painful.
For ten years straight, I have worked on our case, this book, personal letters, a scrapbook of hopeful memories to be made, a time capsule in a beautiful box with ribbon and charms, a family recipe book; anything and everything I can think of to keep my niece close to us and to document this all-consuming, life-altering event.
Journal entries, phone calls, research: I have tried to timestamp every detail.
I recently thought of another way to keep track of all pertinent information in the form of a monthly calendar so the constant efforts being made to bring my niece home will be easily readable at-a-glance.
I have searched the internet for calendars, cards, and graphics to occasionally insert into entries and have found the best designs at GraphicGarden.Com.
I am respectful of copyrights and wrote a personal email to the wonderfully talented Helena Normark, and kindly asked her if I may use her beautiful graphics as I continue to document this unbelievable, non-fiction, fight for justice.
Ms. Normark granted her permission and sent me a sweet response with well-wishes.
With love, I want to extend my deepest thanks to Helena Normark at GraphicGarden.Com for her compassion and support and for allowing me to use her lovely graphics in writing about a not-so-lovely story.
Thank you, Ms. Normark !
← My Niece Will Always Be, My Niece.


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ELT Excellence Awards
Honouring Excellence in Language Teaching
Judging Committee
Celebrating the best ELT practices
The ELT Excellence Awards honours excellence in English language teaching and learning offered by Private Primary and Secondary Schools, State Primary and Secondary Schools as well as by Foreign Language Schools in Greece and Cyprus.
Step by step guide to submit your entry
Let's inspire foreign language teaching!
Download Categories & Guidelines
Company Name (where applicable)
The idea of establishing the ELT Excellence Awards was conceived and materialized in order to recognize and celebrate excellence in English Language Teaching and Learning in Greece and Cyprus.
The initiative was taken having in mind the teacher of English, who has a passion for his/her work, who cares for his/her students, who wants to leave his/her trace in the lives of his/her students, who makes full use of any available resources, who tries new methods and approaches, who wishes to make language learning meaningful and memorable for his/her students.
The initiative was taken having in mind the teacher of English, who makes his/her class an 'event' in which all the students want to be part of, who creates new ideas and new ways of doing things, who transforms a nuisance into something that has never been done before.
We hope that we will hear from as many educational institutions as possible be it state or private. We hope that we can all make real the dream of making our country a hub where the new generation will flourish and prosper.
Anastasia Spyropoulou, Editor in Chief ELT NEWS
Dr Kosmas Vlachos
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Dr Eleni Meletiadou
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The ELT Excellence Awards are sponsored by
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Screen » Film
Small Portions
Murder and morality in Irrational Man
by Ned Lannamann
Remember the joke Woody Allen tells in Annie Hall about the two old women in the Catskills? The gist is this: One woman complains that the food is terrible, the other replies, "I know, such small portions."
Allen's films in this later part of his career are so innocuous, so wisplike, so slight, that while they're not exactly terrible, they do make you feel like a Catskills grandma, given a stingy portion of something that's not very good to begin with. Irrational Man is Allen's latest, and it's a lazy, mostly bad film with a handful of interesting ideas—but not enough to leave your brain feeling anything but undernourished.
Joaquin Phoenix plays a philosophy professor at a prestigious New England university, which allows Irrational Man to take place in Allen's well-trod fantasy-porn milieu of liberal WASP/Jewish wealth—it might as well be the Upper East Side. Because Phoenix is a dark and mysterious man who drinks scotch from a flask, Emma Stone's wide-eyed coed desperately wants to bang him. (The less said about Allen's other well-trod fantasy-porn milieu, the better, I think.) In a staggering twist, Phoenix doesn't bang Stone right away—he's too depressed, or something. So they remain friends; she has a milquetoast boyfriend, anyway, and a set of disinterested parents who don't seem concerned she's hanging out with her drunken, much older professor.
When one of the main characters murders an ostensibly deserving victim, Allen examines morality in terms of the philosophers that make up Phoenix's curriculum—Kant, Kierkegaard, and the like. But again, it's a small portion. Rather than truly examining the ethical intricacies of homicide, the movie plays like a short story written by a vaguely talented college freshman who's taking a Philosophy 101 course. Allen just hasn't put enough on the plate.
Director Woody Allen
Opens Friday
Tin Pan Theater
Almost Practically Perfect in Every Way
Cascade Lakes Roundup
Whip It Good
More by Ned Lannamann
West of Eden
Slow West and the possibilities of the western
Keep on Keepin' On: Clark Terry's Happy Horn
The Jail-y Show
Jon Stewart's Iranian Prison Drama
Everywhere You Go, There You Are
The Future of Film
Movies Make Their Return


Hetlioz is a drug marketed by Vanda Pharms Inc and is included in one NDA. It is available from one supplier. There are eight patents protecting this drug and two Paragraph IV challenges.
Drug patent litigation for HETLIOZ.
This drug has ninety-two patent family members in thirty-one countries.
The generic ingredient in HETLIOZ is tasimelteon. One supplier is listed for this compound. Additional details are available on the tasimelteon profile page.


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Roman Martyrology
Diocese of
Guarenas
Continent: South America
Type: Diocese
Area: 5,186 km²
Population: 651,000 Catholics (95.0% of 685,400 total) (2018)
Statistics: 26 parishes, 31 priests (21 diocesan, 10 religious), 12 deacons, 10 lay religious (10 brothers), 5 seminarians (2018)
Ecclesiastical Province: Caracas
Neighbouring Dioceses: Los Teques (←), La Guaira (↖), Barcelona (→), Valle de la Pascua (↓)
Depends on: Congregation for Bishops
Address: Calle Comercio con Prolongación, Calle Miranda, Casa N° 14 Pueblo Arriba, Guarenas, Estado Miranda, Venezuela
1996.11.30: Established as Diocese of Guarenas / Guarenen(sis) (Latin) (from Diocese of Los Teques)
Special Churches
Cathedral: Catedral Nuestra Señora de Copacabana, Guarenas, Miranda
Present Prelates
Bishop (2020.12.11 – ...): Bishop Tulio Luis Ramírez Padilla (61)
Ordinaries
Bishops of Guarenas (Roman Rite)
Bishop Tulio Luis Ramírez Padilla (61)
(2020.12.11 – ...)
Bishop of Guarenas (Venezuela)
Born: 1960.02.28 (Venezuela)
Ordained Priest: 1984.08.05
Consecrated Bishop: 2012.07.08
Titular Bishop of Ausuccura (2012.04.04 – 2020.12.11)
Auxiliary Bishop of Caracas (Venezuela) (2012.04.04 – 2020.12.11)
Bishop of Guarenas (Venezuela) (2020.12.11 – ...)
Bishop Gustavo García Naranjo (77)
(1996.11.30 – 2020.12.11)
Bishop emeritus of Guarenas (Venezuela)
Bishop of Guarenas (Venezuela) (1996.11.30 – 2020.12.11)


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One for the thumb: Bishop Gorman crushes Reed, 48-14
HS Football PREPS Top News — 08 December 2013
Randall Cunningham II entered the 2013 high school football season under a big microscope.
The Bishop Gorman senior has a famous last name, and would start at quarterback following Anu Solomon, who compiled a 57-3 record as a starter, leading the Gaels to four-straight state titles.
On the field where his father made several big plays for UNLV, Cunningham II shined, running for four touchdowns and throwing for another as Bishop Gorman topped Reed 48-14 in the NIAA D-I state championship game.
"It feels great to finish the year the right way," he said.
"For him to end his season in the fashion that he did, I couldn't be more proud of him," Bishop Gorman head coach Tony Sanchez said.
Cunningham dashed the Reed defense the most on zone-read runs where he decided to keep the football. Sanchez said that was the game plan entering the game, attacking the edges of Reed's defense, a strategy devised after looking at their previous matchups with Reed the past couple of years.
"On the way over to the game, I told the coaches, 'we've got to find one play that works and keep calling it,' " he said. "We found that and just leaned on it all day."
Cunningham's first TD capped off Gorman's first offensive drive of the game, a 12-yard touchdown that answered a Reed quick strike to open the game, as senior quarterback Chris Denn fired a pass to senior wide receiver Trae Wells. Late in the first quarter, Cunningham scored from 23 yards out, the second of six unanswered touchdowns for the Gaels.
Reed remained in striking distance to start the third quarter, down 21-7 and with the ball after a Gorman fumble.
The next set of big plays decided the game.
Denn connected with a streaking Jake Lehmann. The Reed senior wide receiver looked poised to score and cut the deficit down to a touchdown, but Gorman senior free safety Armand Perry tracked him down from behind, swiping at his legs for a touchdown-saving tackle.
Gorman's defense held, and on the fourth down, Reed decided to go for a field goal. Gorman senior cornerback Dylan Weldon had one thing in mind.
"In practice, I always get super close to blocking field goals. In a game, I've never even gotten close," he said. "I just decided that I got to get it. I've got to get a blocked field goal on my resume."
The offense took over, and Cunningham rushed for 28-yard score. On Reed's next possession, Gorman senior cornerback/running back Daniel Stewart caught a deflection and ran it back for a touchdown (his second, adding to a 1-yard TD run in the second quarter).
Instead of 21-14, the game was now 34-7.
"At that point, their back was against the wall, so we knew they were going to have to load the box," Sanchez said.
After a defensive stand, Cunningham connected with senior wide receiver Riley Hoff on a 28-yard touchdown-pass play. It was the third Gorman score in a 91-second stretch.
"It changed the whole dynamics of the game," Sanchez said.
Cunningham finished with 213 yards rushing and four touchdowns on 23 carries. He went 9-of-11 for 111 yards and a touchdown through the air.
With the win, Gorman becomes the first large-school program to win five-straight state championships since Reno High School did it from 1924-1928.
"In a couple days, I'm going to wake up and realize that we dominated the state of Nevada for five years in a row now," Weldon said. "Hopefully, my younger brothers can continue on with the legacy."
"It makes you nervous cause you're going to try and do it again," Sanchez said. "At the end of day, we're going to have to show back up in January, get back in that weight room and try to go 1-0 again."
STORY AND VIDEO BY BARRY WONG


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Commentary :: War and Militarism
Planned Regime Change in Iran and Syria
by Stephen Lendman
Email: lendmanstephen (nospam) sbcglobal.net	 15 Jan 2012
Planned Regime Change in Iran and Syria - by Stephen Lendman
Plans are longstanding. Timing alone isn't known. Signs suggest 2012. If sanctions, subversion, cyberwar, and targeted assassinations fail, expect hot conflict to follow.
On January 9, the Washington Post quoted an anonymous US intelligence official saying America's goal for Iran is "regime change." A next day article retracted the statement, saying:
"An earlier version of this article reported that a US intelligence official had described regime collapse as a goal of US and other sanctions against Iran. An updated version clarifies the official's remarks."
In other words, the Post retracted its correct assessment. Indeed, Washington's longstanding goal is regime change by whatever means necessary, including war.
Recent reports and events are worrisome. On January 13, the The Tribune Company headlined, "US troops quietly surge into Middle East," saying:
CENTCOM head General James Mattis "warned that he needed additional forces to deal with Iran and other potential threats...."
As a result, 15,000 combat troops are positioned in Kuwait. "The new units include two Army infantry brigades and a helicopter unit." In addition, two aircraft carrier battle groups remain in the region.
Nuclear armed and dangerous, they include a carrier, two guided missile cruisers, a guided missile destroyer, another anti-submarine (ASW) one, an ASW frigate, two attack submarines, and a combined ammunition, oiler, supply ship.
On January 13, Foreign Affairs contributor Mark Perry headlined "False Flag," saying:
US intelligence files reveal that "Israeli Mossad officers recruited operatives belonging to the terrorist group Jundallah by passing themselves off as America (CIA) agents."
Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty, part of Washington's worldwide propaganda operation, reported them responsible for assassinating high-ranking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) officers and other government officials.
The State Department designates Jundallah (a militant Pakistan group, allegedly with Al Qaeda and Taliban links) a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
Washington strategically uses insurgent groups like Al Qaeda as allies and/or enemies. Israel's policy is similar.
CIA memos suggested no direct Jundallah contacts. They also showed US intelligence familiarity with Mossad practices, and perhaps encouraged them.
Nonetheless, Perry said "they were stunned by the brazenness of the Mossad's efforts," operating "nearly in the open."
Though no evidence links Jundallah with targeted Iranian assassinations, The New York Times reported that current and former US officials say "(t)he CIA has repeatedly tried to derail Iran's uranium enrichment program by covert means, including introducing sabotaged parts into (its) supply chain."
In addition, its longstanding targeted assassinations policy "fit(s) a pattern over the past two years of covert operations by the West and its allies to 'degrade and delay' Iran's nuclear program."
France's Le Figaro said "the US and Israel have carried out multiple acts of sabotage against sensitive nuclear installations, while ordering targeted killings of Iranian nuclear experts."
Israeli and US agents recruit Iranian assets to sabotage Iran's nuclear program, "which includes targeted assassinations of Iranian nuclear experts...."
At the same time, the State Department aggressively denies doing so. In a November 3, 2010 letter to the Wall Street Journal, it said:
"We have repeatedly stated, and reiterate again that the United States has not provided support to Jundallah. The United States does not sponsor any form of terrorism."
"We will continue to work with the international community to curtail support for terrorist organizations and prevent violence against innocent civilians. We have also encouraged other governments to take comparable actions against Jundallah."
In fact, state-sponsored terrorism is official US policy. So is Israel's. In addition, both countries willfully and maliciously target civilians in combat operations. Claiming otherwise is duplicitous.
In July 2008, Seymour Hersh said Congress agreed "to fund a major escalation of covert operations against Iran, according to current and former military, intelligence and congressional sources."
He reported US Special Operations Forces conducting cross-border operations from southern Iraq.
In June 2011, he also said despite "years of covert operations inside Iran, extensive satellite imagery, and the recruitment of many Iranian intelligence assets, the United States and its allies, including Israel, have been unable to find irrefutable evidence of (a covert) nuclear-weapons program in Iran, according to intelligence and diplomatic officials here and abroad."
America's annual intelligence assessment says the same thing.
An unnamed former CIA officer told Perry that it's "pretty hard for the US to distance itself from....Israeli attack(s) on Iran" while targeted assassinations and other subversion remain ongoing.
Recent comments by US officials also reveal plans for regime change in Syria. National Security Advisor Tom Donilon said that toppling Bashar al-Assad "would constitute Iran's greatest setback in the region yet - a strategic blow that will further shift the balance of power in the region against Iran."
According to Under Secretary of State for the Near East Jeffrey Feltman, Washington will "relentlessly pursue our two-track strategy of supporting the opposition and diplomatically and financially strangling the (Syrian) regime until that outcome is achieved."
He added that replacing it with one "more compatible" with Washington's regional interests is prioritized. Strategy includes falsified or exaggerated reports, including alleged massacres, torture, rape, and other claims to enlist public support.
Al Jazeera notoriously acts as Qatar's official mouthpiece. Long ago it lost legitimacy as a credible news service. It waged war on Gaddafi. It features biased reports on Syria's insurgency, and offers mostly pro-Western reports. What began as a noble experiment deteriorated visibly to a voice for imperial interests.
In December, Stratfor global intelligence cautioned:
"Most of the (Syrian) opposition's more serious claims have turned out to be grossly exaggerated or simply untrue....revealing more about the opposition's weakness (and credibility) than the level of instability inside the Syrian regime."
It also warned against falsified media reports "that make the case for foreign backing."
On January 5, Asia Times writer Aisling Byrne headlined, "A mistaken case for Syrian regime change," saying:
A calculated plan against Assad's government is ongoing. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov explained:
"It is clear that the purpose is to provoke a humanitarian catastrophe to get a pretext to demand external interference into this conflict."
In mid-December, the American Conservative reported:
"CIA analysts are skeptical regarding the march to war. The frequently cited United Nations report that more than 3,500 civilians have been killed by Assad's soldiers (now 5,000 allegedly or more), is based largely on rebel sources and is uncorroborated. The Agency has refused to sign off on the claims."
"Likewise, accounts of mass defections from the Syrian army and pitched battles between deserters and loyal soldiers appear to be a fabrication, with few defections being confirmed independently."
In fact, Washington, Israel, key NATO partners, and regional allies shaped externally generated insurgent attacks. Funds and heavy weapons are supplied. Operations are coordinated out of America's Incirlik air base. Turkey's actively involved. So are unmarked NATO warplanes. Planned regime change will precede belligerently targeting Iran.
Expect Washington's grand scheme to continue until total control over the entire Mediterranean Basin through Central Asia is achieved to Russia and China's borders. As a result, imagine the potential horrors ahead, including at home.
On January 14, Michel Chossudovsky suggested a possible scenario, saying:
Washington and Israel plan war against Iran. "Advanced weapons systems have been deployed." Intelligence elements and Special Forces operate inside the country. Spying and reconnaissance continue.
"Bunker buster B61 tactical nuclear weapons are slated to be used against (Iran's) alleged nuclear program." Operations include massive regional troop deployments. US/Israeli "naval war games are being conducted simultaneously."
Will a "war pretext incident" be triggered to provoke Iran to respond? Coalition to Oppose Arms Trade coordinator Richard Sanders was quoted saying:
"Throughout history, war planners have used various forms of deception to trick their enemies. Because public support is so crucial (to wage war), the home population is also subject to deceitful stratagems."
"Perhaps the most common pretext for war is an apparently unprovoked enemy attack. Such attacks, however, are often fabricated, incited or deliberately allowed to occur. They are then exploited to arouse widespread public sympathy" to retaliate.
A Final Comment
Throughout US history, false flag big lies provided pretexts for militarism, wars, occupations, domestic repression, and national security state extremism.
More recent examples alone are notable, including the fake August 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident, manufactured ones to depose Panama's Manuel Noriega, collusion and deception conning Saddam Hussein to invade Kuwait, 9/11 to attack Afghanistan, WMD lies precipitating Iraq's attack and occupation, and falsified reports about Gaddafi to target Libya.
Is Syria next, then Iran, then global war followed by militarized homeland repression? Using Obama as front man, out-of-control militarists make it possible!
Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen (at) sbcglobal.net.
Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.
http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour/.
http://sjlendman.blogspot.com
This work is in the public domain


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Biografia

Si formò a Utrecht o a Haarlem nell'ambiente di Jan van Scorel o di Maarten van Heemskerck.

In giovane età visitò Roma, come è confermato dalla scoperta della sua firma nella Domus Aurea, e Venezia, dove entrò nell'atelier di Tiziano. In quanto membro dell'entourage del celebre pittore, partecipò nel 1548 e nel 1550 alla Dieta di Augusta, dove tornò nel 1542 ed ebbe l'opportunità di ritrarre numerosi nobili della Svevia, come quelli della famiglia Vöhlin. A partire dal 1543 dipinse il ciclo di affreschi della Villa dei Vescovi a Luvigliano di Torreglia.

Tra il 1548 ed il 1553 si recò più volte ad Augusta; a questo periodo risalgono i numerosi ritratti eseguiti per nobili e clero. Per il cardinale Otto Truchsess von Waldburg realizzò un Battesimo di Cristo ora nel museo di Caen.

Negli anni sessanta si stabilì a Padova, dove morì verosimilmente, in un anno imprecisato dopo il 1568.

Stile
Fu importante soprattutto come pittore di paesaggi. La sua particolare fusione tra stile olandese e italiano fu un decisivo modello per lo sviluppo dei paesaggi ideali del XVII secolo.

Opere
 Battesimo di Cristo, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Caen
 Giuditta ed Oloferne, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Lille
 Noli me tangere, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Lille

Bibliografia
 AA.VV., Alte Pinakothek Munich, Edition Lipp, Monaco di Baviera, 1986. ISBN 978-3-87490-701-9

 Sören Fischer, Das Odeo Cornaro, die Villa Farnesina und der Oecus kyzikenos: Wandmalerei und Architektur im Spannungsfeld zwischen vitruvianischer Textexegese und Interpretation, in Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte, 77, 2014, pp. 199–220.
 Sören Fischer, Das Landschaftsbild als gerahmter Ausblick in den venezianischen Villen des 16. Jahrhunderts - Sustris, Padovano, Veronese, Palladio und die illusionistische Landschaftsmalerei, Petersberg 2014. ISBN 978-3-86568-847-7
Achille della Ragione - Collezione della Ragione - pag. 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - Napoli 1997

Altri progetti

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Had to send Ol' Bob, our 16 year old travel'n buddy... across the bridge. Tuff Stuff. That Cat saw more country than most people will ever see.
Skin Cancer.. but he had begun to show his age.. which made it a little easier.. but not much.
That's always sad. But good memories remain. And although he can't be replaced, he can be succeeded, and Lizzie will open up new spaces of her own.
I am so very sorry, but know in your heart that you gave Bob a final, wonderful gift of love.
With 8 Cats and a Lovebird!
Sorry to hear of your loss, but it sounds like you gave him a wonderful life. I am of the opinion that cats adopt us and when they pass over the bridge they alert the cat world that there is an opening for a new cat to adopt us.
Ugh my heart feels for you. Still not over having to let my 18 year old bff go months back. Cats are the best. Best to you and I am glad you have another fur ball to keep you company and love on.
I'm so sorry. No matter how long we enjoy their company, they always have to leave too soon. One day soon you'll be able to remember him with a smile.
They don't live long enough, but spread 100x the affection of most people in their short lives.
So sorry for your loss Joe.
I am of the opinion that cats adopt us and when they pass over the bridge they alert the cat world that there is an opening for a new cat to adopt us.
I think the same applies to dogs. We lost our Sheltie many months back, and it was gut wrenching. We finally got the courage to visit the Humane Society, and came home with a mom and daughter set of dogs that needed a home. Now we can't imagine not having them, and it feels like Goldie relinquished her spot so they could have a home. We still think of her often, but it's in a positive light.


Performing the Yoga of Self.
Houston Smith: The physical world is constantly changing; it is a scene of perpetual perishing. Sages, however, through deep introspection, came to the conclusion that whatever ceases to exist cannot be the ultimate reality. An all-pervading consciousness, which by its nature is eternal and indestructible, can alone be the ultimate reality. We catch glimpses of this all-pervading reality when we encounter people who show tremendous courage, extraordinary creativity, and boundless compassion.


With the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) coming into force this month, take the opportunity to review your data and processes and see what else is available.
Your CRM in not just your company data. It's a major asset to your business as it identifies the value of future and existing customers. This is particularly key when organisations seek investment, acquisitions and are forming new partnerships.
With so many solutions now available, the balance of function, budget and usability can be confusing and often overwhelming. To make sure you select the right CRM for your business, here are our top tips to help get you started.
Adoption is key to success. Identify the sales and marketing personnel who are most likely to buy into the project and they will do the hard work for you. Creating an efficient process that your team supports will help you to identify the CRM that will support this, rather than forcing a process to comply to software.
A great CRM should be intuitive and simple to use. Do your planning first and lay out your main objectives before you go headlong into demos and free trials. This sounds like simple advice, but you'd be surprised how many organisations start off without a clear mission and launch straight into the sales cycle.
Some CRMs can start out great, but when you come to try and do anything useful with it, you have to invest in expensive consultants, rocket scientists or add-ons. Expect to keep investing in your CRM tools to help feed it..
Pick a solution that is the right size for you and the system that you can grow into. What are your predictions for numbers of sales, pre-sales, post-sales and support people that are going to be using it?
With forward planning, you can avoid constantly tinkering with systems, adding or extracting fields. This means you will be able to see trends in your data and identify where you can find successes.
Most CRMs should give you a joined up world of your online and offline assets including website, email, events.
Understand the terms of your contract so you don't get caught out with number of users, contacts etc. The devil's in the detail so read through this carefully!
We've been involved in many procurement exercises with CRM and used the very latest over the years. No one solution is the perfect fit for every business and we can alleviate the pressure of selecting the right tool/system/partner, by discovering what you want and need and offering some free advice to help guide you.
If you'd like to find out more about how we can help, fill in the form below and we'll be in touch!


Learn techniques for bringing non-specialists into the content strategy process.
Practice facilitating working sessions that solve realistic content problems.
Design activities and approaches specific to your organization's content challenges.


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+44 2037691778 +1-845-458-6882 [email protected] Submit Manuscript
Journal of Neurology & Neurophysiology
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a complex injury with a broad spectrum of symptoms and disabilities. Traumatic brain injury usually results from a violent blow or jolt to the head or body. An object penetrating the skull, such as a bullet or shattered piece of skull, also can cause traumatic brain injury.
Related Journals of Traumatic Brain Injury
Trauma & Treatment, International Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, International Journal of Neurorehabilitation, Brain Injury, Brain Research, Human Brain Mapping, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, Cognitive Brain Research, Brain Pathology
High Impact List of Articles
Brain Stimulation Hippocampus Hypothalamus Limbic System Neural Model Neurological disorders Neurosurgery Pituitary Spinal Cord Traumatic Brain Injury
Copyright © 2023 Journal of Neurology & Neurophysiology


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Q: apache htaccess mod_rewrite enable access to a specific directory I've got a subdomain with following .htaccess file:
Options +FollowSymLinks +ExecCGI
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
  RewriteEngine On
  RewriteRule ^$ index.html [QSA]
  RewriteRule ^([^.]+)$ $1.html [QSA]
  RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
  RewriteRule ^(.*)$ index.php [QSA,L]
</IfModule>

It is a standard symfony1.x (php framework) htaccess file. I have added a abc directory, but when I want to view it in my browser, I'm redirected to index.php. What shall I add to the .htaccess file to let me view abc directory and leave all other redirects alone?

A: Add this rule below RewriteEngine On line:
# ignore all below rules for abc directory
RewriteRule ^abc(/.*)?$ - [L,NC]


There are few considerations regarding client events. It's is a terrific opportunity for you to build upon your relational capital when you connect on a personal level with your customer. Activities out of the office allow you to get to know your clients better and create shared memories. Strong relationships are a cornerstone of successful sales. Take advantage of at least some of these offers. You'll strengthen your bond and enjoy the experience.
TINA: While there are certain boundaries to respect, many robust business relationships include after-hour and weekend invitations. They provide a great opportunity to build rapport. Think of how much business is conducted (and closed) during a round of golf!
Some of us have a difficult time saying "no," particularly when it's a client. We don't want to miss an opportunity to socialize with our client, we don't want our client to misinterpret our decline as a "brush off." However, as with other invitations that come our way, there are times that we simply have other plans. It is okay to say "no, thank you." You might suggest getting together another time – or invite your client to one of your events – to maintain that level of rapport.


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Georgia DCH votes to halt taxpayer funding of employee abortions
By Nathaniel Darnell | August 12, 2013 , 07:12am
Kudos to Governor Deal, and shame on Georgia's speaker of the House for gumming up the works.
Last week saw a significant victory for the pro-life movement in Georgia as Governor Nathan Deal worked with the Department of Community Health to vote to restrict state employee insurance policies from covering abortions. State employees currently receive abortion coverage in their insurance package, approximately 75% of which is paid for with taxpayer funds. The changes would ban elective abortion coverage for the roughly 650,000 people covered by the State Health Benefit Plan. The number covered includes current employees, retirees, and dependents.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the Department of Community Health voted 5-3 on a health care plan design that would restrict state employee insurance policies from covering these abortions. The policy change was backed by Governor Deal after lawmakers failed to pass similar legislation for the last two years.
Governor Nathan Deal of Georgia. | Source: National Right to Life News
The number of state employees taking advantage of the abortion services has been on the decline in recent years, but this policy would halt it altogether for the time being. Some 549 patients under the state plan sought abortions in fiscal year 2009, costing $343,728 in state taxpayer money, and 447 sought abortions in 2010. In 2011, 366 surgical abortions and 47 medical abortions were performed for state employees. The total cost that year was nearly $223,000, the majority of which involved taxpayer funds.
For the last two years, State Senator Mike Crane (R-Newnan) has fought for legislation to remove abortion coverage from state employee insurance plans. "We have protected the life of a fish," Crane said. "I expect the same for the life of the unborn."
Senator Crane's legislation is still needed. While the vote from the Department of Community Health is a significant act that stops state taxpayers from being forced to finance abortion services for state employees, the measure can just as easily be undone by a future administration unless legislation is passed to make this policy permanent.
Under the Georgia State Constitution, the Board of Regents alone have jurisdiction over state employees in the higher educational system, which the Georgia General Assembly cannot touch apart from a state constitutional amendment. This means that a simple statute passed by the state legislature would be capable of permanently banning state-funded abortions services for every state agency except those under the university system of the state. The Department of Community Health's vote as an agency of the state executive branch appears to at least have the benefit of including the university system as well in its policy scope.
Governor Deal said this ensures "that state taxpayers aren't paying for a procedure that many find morally objectionable."
Georgia Right to Life (GRTL) issued a press release praising the governor for taking this action. "I am deeply grateful to the Governor for his follow through on this important issue," said Dan Becker, GRTL President. "His willingness to stand up for innocent life should serve as an example to others in Georgia['s] government."
State Senator Mike Crane (R-Newnan).
Had it not been for State Senator Crane bringing this issue to the forefront of the public debate in the Georgia General Assembly, it might not have ever come to the attention of Governor Deal and the people of Georgia. His legislation twice passed the Republican-controlled State Senate but was halted in the also Republican-controlled House of Representatives, which is dominated by Georgia Speaker David Ralston (R-Blue Ridge). Lobbying groups from the health care industry have been among the three largest contributors to Speaker Ralston since he became speaker in 2010, giving over $131,000 to his his personal re-election campaign.
Most other states have some kind of abortion subsidy for their state employees. Check with your state legislators to find out if your state is using your taxpayer funds to pay for other people's abortions.


What if the cost of the project shoots beyond my expectations?
O2I not only informs you about the cost of the first assignment, but also the lifecycle cost of the entire project which includes costs of training, infrastructure, management, etc. We have transparent policies, and send a cost estimate to the client before any new work begins. Our services are flexible so that you can ramp-down the team size to limit expenses, when needed.
How can I be insured against cost inflation and time delays?
Begin by fixing realistic deadlines. Ask the vendor for inputs while finalizing the deadlines, so that you are not disappointed later. Always keep a little room for delay during the project initiation phase. Sign service-level agreements to minimize delays in time-sensitive projects. You can keep the costs in check by agreeing to a fixed rate for a specified period of time.
What are the engagement models and how do I make the payments?
O2I offers fixed price model, hourly model, and development center model. You have to select the engagement model based on your project requirements. Most small businesses prefer fixed prices, hourly rates, or per-unit pricing for outsourcing as these offer flexibility and lower risk.
What if the quality of work is not satisfactory?
To avoid such situations test our services before you begin outsourcing. You may also ask for customer references to learn more about us. O2I is flexible to accommodate your concerns and requests. You may also select a performance and incentive based pricing model where you pay us based on quality achievements.
Will the team be able to handle fluctuations in workload?
If you expect workload fluctuations, O2I can help you with flexible service options. We ensure that process documentation and training material is in place so that new team members can start performing quickly.


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Industry / Retail
Mazal! (Again!) LVMH Buying Tiffany for $400 Million Less
October 29, 2020 by Rob Bates
LVMH has gotten Tiffany & Co. to do what many thought impossible: sell at a discount.
Nearly 11 months after the luxury conglomerate struck a deal to buy Tiffany & Co. for $16.2 billion, it's now struck a second deal to buy it for $15.8 billion, more than $400 million less than the original price.
The new agreement comes after LVMH declared in September that it was no longer bound by the terms of the original deal, sparking an often-bitter legal battle, which this pact ends.
The renegotiated price comes to $131.50 a share—less than the $135 a share LVMH pledged to pay last year, and far below the $139 a share Tiffany's board originally sought. The new price is, in fact, not much higher than the $130 a share that LVMH offered as a follow-up to its original bid, which Tiffany's board rejected.
The new deal still requires approval by Tiffany's shareholders. Assuming that approval comes, the deal is meant to close in early 2021. The original deal was supposed to close last summer.
In contrast to last year's announcement, where the two sides showered each other with accolades, the release LVMH put out Thursday was relatively restrained, perhaps reflecting the seven-week legal and public relations war that preceded it.
"We are very pleased to have reached an agreement with LVMH at an attractive price and to now be able to proceed with the merger," said board chairman Roger N. Farah in the statement. "The board concluded it was in the best interests of all of our stakeholders to achieve certainty of closing."
Said LVMH president and CEO Bernard Arnault in the same statement: "This balanced agreement with Tiffany's board allows LVMH to work on the Tiffany acquisition with confidence and resume discussions with Tiffany's management on the integration details. We are as convinced as ever of the formidable potential of the Tiffany brand and believe that LVMH is the right home for Tiffany and its employees during this exciting next chapter."
The modified agreement allows for Tiffany to pay its regular quarterly dividend of $0.58 per share on Nov. 19. The other terms of the merger agreement remain unchanged.
(Image courtesy of Tiffany & Co.)


Mike Powell, Skate Guru from K2 Skates and Rob Gill, of InlineSkates.com, review the 2015 FIT 84 BOA and Alexis BOA Inline Skates.
Hey, welcome to the Daily Spin. I'm Rob from inlineskates.com joined today by Mike from K2. Mike, thanks for being here. Hey, thanks for having me, man.
So, we're talking about the Alexis Boa and the Fit 84 Boa Fantastic fitness skates from K2. The Boa refers to the lacing system on this skate, we'll actually get to that in a little bit. What's the first feature with this skate? Well, with any K2 skate, Rob, the first feature is going to be that patented Original Soft Boot. We build our skates like a piece of performance footwear and once you put your foot in a K2, you'll realize why the Original Soft Boot is better than any other inline skate construction on the market. For sure, now let's talk a little bit about the Boa Lacing System on this skate. Well, it is by far the best lacing system that there is in inline skating. We started it with K2 Snowboards back in the day in 2001 and we worked with Boa and we kind of brought that relationship into the inline world and really this closure system, as you can see right here, all I do is pull that dial out and I can get out of my skates. When I want to get back in my skates I just pop the dial in and I can spin it and when you're on the trail and you're going 20 miles an hour and you realize your skates are a little loose, you don't have to pull over with a Boa. You just lean down, shift on the fly, you can dial that thing in and it's an amazing feature and the best closure you can find for an inline skate. For sure. I absolutely love the Boa. I have it on my snowboard boots, I have it on my inline skates and, yeah, being, like you said, being able to adjust on the fly is fantastic, you don't have to find a place to stop and sit down and tie your skates up. It's really an awesome feature so moving down the skate, aluminum frame with 84mm wheels on it.
Yeah, so you've got a nice medium-length aluminum frame that's going to carry a lot of speed. That 84mm wheel is going to carry speed as well. You combine that with an ILQ7 bearing and you've got one of the best bearings on the market for inline skating combined with a great wheel set up, frame and the Original Soft Boot, you've got the perfect skate for those that really love going out and working out on their inline skates. Fantastic. so, now the Fit 84 and the Alexis, who is the skater for these skates? You know, it's a fitness skater. It's someone who is going out there a couple times a week, really enjoying being on the trails and, while inline skating might not be their primary workout, they want the best in fitness skates and that's what you've got right here. Fantastic. So, there you have it the Fit 84 Boa on the men's side and the Alexis Boa on the women's side. Really great skates in K2's fitness line up. you can check them out on inlineskates.com and thanks for joining us on the Daily Spin.