text:
Centre for Research on Globalisation
Media Disinformation and the Nature of the Iraqi Resistance
by Ghali Hassan
www.globalresearch.ca May 2005
The URL of this article is: http://globalresearch.ca/articles/HAS505C.html
The flurry of news, hypotheses, and disinformation about the nature of the Iraqi Resistance against the Occupation continues unabated.
How much of this is managed propaganda against the Iraqi Resistance?
According to both the Western mainstream media and the alternative media, the U.S. is "building democracy" and fighting "terrorism" in Iraq.
The distortions of reality and lack of oppositional media leave people in the West, Americans in particular, ill informed.
The Western media diligently diverts public attention from the illegal Occupation of Iraq and the responsibility of the U.S./Western governments for the horrendous crimes committed against the people of Iraq.
Western journalists and pundits are the main agents of this distorted propaganda. The aims are to portray the Iraqi Resistance as violent "religious fanatics" isolated from the rest of the population and to advocate for ongoing occupation.
Time and again, the public have shown to be less tolerant to the old cliché of "religious fanatics". By contrast, people around the world have a record of supporting national resistance movements.
In other word, portraying the Iraqi national Resistance movement as a collection of "religious fanatics" and "foreign" fighters "with nothing to lose" is the Occupation's way of discrediting the Iraqi Resistance and denying the Iraqi people their legitimate right to fight for freedom and national sovereignty.
Amply documented, the pretexts for the war and the Occupation were based on fake intelligence. Hence, the U.S. and its "allies" are in the process, through media disinformation, of not only legitimizing the Occupation, but also of creating new pretexts for the maintenance of continued US military presence.
The most common pretext in the media reports is that U.S. forces are invited to stay in Iraq to prevent civil war and "maintain stability".
But like the pretext of WMD, there is no evidence to support these U.S. sponsored lies.
There is a U.S-engineered stalemate with no one with a majority to govern effectively. The US installed "government" is powerless, dominated by the same groups of expatriates who lobbied for the invasion and occupation of Iraq. The U.S. is pitting Iraqis against each other and creating a climate of fear.
In this regard, the creation, arming and financing of 'ethnic militias' and death squads by U.S. forces is designed to create ethnic divisions and provoke sectarian violence among Iraqis.
These US sponsored militia groups are:
The Kurdish Peshmerga whose leaders supported the U.S. invasion and Occupation.
The Iranian-trained Badr Brigades,
The armed wing of the Supreme Council of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) led by Ibrahim Al-Jaaferi of the Da'wa party,
The INC militia of Ahmed Chalabi, and the INA militia of Iyad Allawi.
All these groups are involved in terrorist activities against Iraqi civilians. The latter three groups, entered Iraq on the back of U.S. tanks, without valid Iraqi citizenship papers.
The Kurdish militia are the Occupation's most loyal collaborators, receiving arms and money from their masters. Together with the occupying forces, they are responsible for wide scale atrocities in Iraqi towns and villages.
Together with the Peshmerga, Israeli Mossad agents and U.S. forces, the militia groups went on systematic killings of thousands of prominent Iraqi academics, scientists, politicians and religious leaders. They also participated in the atrocity and total destruction of Fallujah, which is depicted as "the storming of Fallujah" in most mainstream media. The city was completely destroyed and still a 'no go zone' for Iraqis. Other Iraqi towns and cities have not escaped this deliberate destruction.
Their crimes have never been investigated, and no one has been arrested. In fact the Bush Administration is protecting these criminals elements and encouraging their crimes.
Former U.S. administrator in Baghdad, Paul Bremer at the behest of Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, former Deputy of Defence Paul Wolfowitz and Ahmad Chalabi initiated the murderous policy termed "DeBaathification".
The Bush Administration is not only supporting this murderous policy, it introduced the "El Salvador option" of murdering Iraqi dissidents through the appointment John Negroponte as U.S. Ambassador to Iraq.
Chalabi who never lived in Iraq before the invasion, stated that he, "wants to raise Iraq from the ground and build 'new' Iraq". What is taking place in Iraq today is a U.S-instigated criminal atrocity.
In addition to the daily intrusive and aggressive house raids being conducted by U.S. soldiers Iraqis also witness daily, routine street patrols.
Journalist Ken Dillian of Knight Ridder wrote:
"All day long, the soldiers pointed their guns at Iraqi civilians, whom they called 'hajis'.... Wary of ambushes, they rammed cars that got in the way of their Humvees. Always on the lookout for car bombs, they stopped, screamed at, shoved to the ground and searched people driving down the road after curfew - or during the day if they looked suspicious".
According to a recent report by the U.S. Project on Defense Alternatives:
"Strong majorities in the Sunni and Shiite community oppose the occupation – and significant minorities have registered support for attacks on US troops. 'What drives these attitudes more than anything else', says the report's author, Carl Conetta, 'are nationalism, the coercive practices of the occupation, and the collateral effects of military operations'".
The report, Vicious Circle: The Dynamics of Occupation and Resistance in Iraq, notes U.S. occupation abuses many Iraqis every day. Iraqis face: "Constant foreign military patrols - about 12,000 per week; Ubiquitous (and too often deadly) vehicle check-points; Raids -- 8,000 total since May 2003; and Citizen round-ups -- 80,000 detained since April 2003". People have only one option left: Resistance.
All resistance movements have been required to respond with armed resistance to defend against military aggression and occupation. Iraq is not different.
Violent resistance arises from violent military occupation.
How the Media depicts the Resistance
It is easy for the U.S. "Left" and "Liberals" to pontificate about 'non-violent' resistance, but what is at issue is the violence committed by the occupying forces. It is a clear case of double standards and distortion of the underlying facts. It also points to a lack of solidarity on the part of those "progressive" groups in the West, who put the onus on the Iraqi people, who are defending their homeland against US imperial aggression.
It should be borne in mind that the U.S. "is the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today", and all acts of violence and destruction in Iraq have occurred under the radar of U.S. forces.
The U.S. press and Western media are focusing on civilians casualties with a view to discrediting the Iraqi Resistance.
Regrettably, much of the coverage of the Iraqi Resistance in the Western media has focused on the U.S-created phantom groups of Al-Zarqawi and Al-Qaeda, described as "radical Islamists" or "suicide bombers". Yet despite the media hype, there exists no substantial evidence that these groups are active inside Iraq. Most of the attacks on the occupying forces are carried out by the main Iraqi Resistance groups, and very few of these attacks were on civilians.
Western media are only interested in car bombings that kill civilians. The reality is that occasionally the bombs missed their intended targets, which are the U.S military convoys. Anthony Cordesman of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies notes in this regard that 77 percent of all attacks were against military targets of the U.S. and "Coalition Forces", and only 4.2 per cent of these attacks were led in civilian areas.
According to Iraqi sources, in contrast to Western media accounts, most of the terrorist acts such as kidnappings and hostages attributed by the Western media to Iraqi "insurgents" were carried out by the U.S-created militias.
These reports also point to the role of U.S. and Israeli (Mossad) intelligence, which are involved in a process of distorting the image of the Resistance. There is, in this regard, a growing body of analysis which suggests that the various acts of violence and kidnappings attributed to the Resistance are part of a deliberate and conscious propaganda effort by the occupying forces to distort reality. (See References below)
The strategy is to absolve the U.S. of any crimes and legitimize a prolonged Occupation. "Whenever major terrorist operations happened, it was mostly with US knowledge or involvement. Israel's Mossad planned major terror operations in Iraq, recruiting 2,000 mercenaries before the war and sending them to various Iraqi cities to offer protection and support to the occupation forces", reported the Egyptian, Al-Ahram Weekly.
The hidden agenda is to blame the Iraqi Resistance for these attacks. In other words, the intelligence operation essentially consists in demonizing the Resistance movement, thereby weakening public support for it.
Who is behind the violence in Iraq? U.S. forces and their Israeli agents together with the main militia groups, which now form the core of the new Iraqi army, police and security forces. People have often been found dead after the police and security forces have arrested them. According to Adnan Al-Duliemi, head of the Muslim Endowment, a religious organization that supervises mosques and Muslim shrines, Iraqi Police Forces were "complacent about, even complicit with those killings". He called on the "government to open an investigation into the killings.
The U.S. and its allies have much to gain from a divided Iraq embroiled in sectarian violence. No investigation of these police killings has been conducted and the Occupation forces together with the Western media blamed this orchestrated police violence on the Iraqi Resistance.
These fabricated stories are fed into the Western news chain. They are used to portray the U.S fighting one group of Iraqi (Muslim) fanatics who see the U.S. as "infidel", rather than as a violent occupier.
Western media reports on Iraq are then linked up with 9/11 stories, namely that the U.S. had been attacked on 9/11, and that this war is "justified". This type of reporting, which consists in dehumanizing the Iraqi Resistance, is aimed at a receptive Western audience, which shares the perpetrators frame of reference, to exploit an overarching climate of fear and prejudice, and in the process encourage more racism and Islamophobia.
Part of the alternative media seems to have joined the bandwagon. Several alternative media commentators have depicted the Iraqi Resistance in much the same way. According to to an Iraq dispatch from Patrick Cockburn of CounterPunch, who is embedded with the Kurdish Peshmerga:
The strength of the armed resistance is misunderstood outside Iraq. It has always been fragmented. Unlike the National Liberation Front in Vietnam or the Provisional IRA and Sinn Fein in Northern Ireland, it is not well organised…They have no political wing. The fanatical Sunni fundamentalists, commonly called the Salafi or the Wahhabi, see Iraqi Shias [sic] and Christians as infidels just as worthy of death as any US soldier. When American forces damaged two mosques in Mosul in the fighting last November, the resistance blew up two Iraqi Christian churches. Such sectarianism makes it impossible for the resistance to become a truly nationalist movement, but there are four or five million Sunni Arabs a strong enough base for an insurgency". (CounterPunch, May 13, 2005).
No corroborating evidence, no names, and no concrete documentation, however, are provided regarding the "fragmented" nature of the Iraqi Resistance aside from anecdotal news items, which invariably tend to downplay the violence of the Occupation, not to mention the crimes and atrocities committed by US forces.
Moreover, why should the Iraqi Resistance be modeled on the Vietnamese NLF or the Irish Republican Army (IRA), which Western journalists tend to romanticize, in order to cast a bad light on the Iraqi Resistance? Both, the IRA and the NLF were also involved in countless violent acts, which resulted in civilian casualties.
While imperial occupations have a similar logic, the circumstances of countries and their people are different. The Iraqi Resistance targets Iraqi collaborators, who side with the US led Occupation, because they are rightly considered to be "spies and traitors." (Incidentally, this pattern of executing "collaborators" was also followed by the French Resistance during World War II.)
It is important to remember that without popular support, which is the basis of any national resistance movement, the Iraqi Resistance would not be able to operate. Of significance, is that after two years of U.S. brutality and violence, Iraqi Resistance groups have been able to integrate, modify their methods and fight effectively against the biggest military machine in history.
While there are foreign volunteers fighting alongside Iraqis, there is no evidence of "foreign fighters" such as the Salafi and Wahhabi sects (of Saudi Arabia) in the Resistance movement. This is part of the U.S.-created Al-Zarqawi myth, much more useful than the myth of WMD.
Moreover, the Occupation forces themselves have yet to provide concrete evidence of these "foreign fighters", let alone evidence to substantiate the presence of Al-Zarqawi. From an Iraqi perspective, the "foreigners" in Iraq are U.S. soldiers and mercenaries from Britain, Italy, Australia, South Korea and Japan, etc.
Moreover, there is, in this regard, a clear distinction between "insurgents" and "resistance". The term "insurgents" used profusely by mainstream and alternative journalists alike tends again to denigrate the resistance, while upholding the legitimacy of the Occupation, which is directed against the "insurgents".
In a subsequent dispatch from Iraq, Cockburn wrote:
"Many of the resistance groups are bigoted Sunni Arab fanatics who see Shia [sic] as well as US soldiers as infidels whom it is a religious duty to kill. Others are led by officers [sic] from Saddam's brutal security forces. But Washington never appreciated the fact that the US occupation was so unpopular that even the most unsavoury groups received popular support…[U.S. forces] massive firepower meant they won any set-piece battle, but it also meant that they accidentally killed so many Iraqi civilians that they were the recruiting sergeants of the resistance". (CounterPunch, 16 May 2005)
And what evidence is offered in support of these assertions? While the US led occupation is intent on fomenting social divisions and religious hatred, there is ample evidence of a mass movement where Sunnis and Shiites have in fact joined hands in opposing the US led occupation.
This over-armed military machine is unpopular because it kills so many Iraqi civilians "accidentally". Remember, that more than 100,000 Iraqi civilians, most of them innocent women and children have been killed and continue to be killed "accidentally".
And the total destruction of the vibrant city of Fallujah, and the killing of more than 6,000 innocent civilians, using napalm bombs deliberately designed to kill many civilians in densely populated areas, is just by "accident". The rate of civilian deaths in Iraq under U.S. Occupation is far greater than anything perpetrated by the regime of Saddam Hussein.
U.S. forces are provided with "immunity" from prosecution, making it very easy for them to kill Iraqis with institutionalized impunity, as if Iraqis were not even human beings. The criminal practice emanates from the Pentagon, it is created by the U.S. government to encourage U.S. recruits into more wars of aggression.
All Iraqis, including the Resistance leaders and leaders of the influential Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS), and others have rejected the attacks against civilians and has blamed U.S. forces and their allies for orchestrating the violence.
Mr. Harith Al-Dhari, the head of the AMS, publicly blamed the Badr Brigades for the recent spate of killings of Sunni Muslim clerics in the country. "The parties that are behind the campaign of killings of preachers of mosques and worshippers are…the Badr Brigades. [They] are responsible for the escalating tensions", Mr. Al-Dhari told Al-jazeera. "Which religion allows anyone to kill more than 100 Iraqis, destroy 100 families and destroy 100 houses?" …."Who are those people who do this? Where did they come from?...[This] is a conspiracy to defame the reputation of the Iraqi [R]esistance by wearing its dress and using its name falsely", Cleric Ahmed Abdul Ghafour Samarrae told Edward Cody of The Washington Post in 2004. "Any action targeting civilians is forbidden under any circumstances", Sayyid Muqtada Al-Sadr told AFP. "The occupiers are trying to sow division among the Iraqi people, but there are no Sunnis and Shi'ites. Iraqis are one. It is not acceptable to direct to the Sunnis the allegations of ugly acts committed by the occupier against the Shiites", said Al-Sadr.
As I wrote previously, the Resistance is a homegrown movement of several Iraqi groups taking directions from members of their respective communities.
Whatever the religious and political affiliation of the Resistance, the main aim is the liberation of Iraq from U.S. forces.
"[The Resistance] intellectual tendencies are usually described as a mixture of Islamic and pan-Arab ideas that agree on the need to put an end to the US presence in Iraq", wrote Samir Haddad and Mazin Ghazi of the Baghdad weekly Al-Zawra.
"These groups have common denominators, the most important of which perhaps are focusing on killing US soldiers, rejecting the abductions and the killing of hostages, rejecting the attacks on Iraqi policemen, and respecting the beliefs of other religions", added Haddad and Ghazi.
According to Molly Bingham writing in the Boston Globe, a journalist and a fellow at Harvard University, who spent some time with a group of Resistance fighters in Iraq:
"I met Shia [sic] and Sunnis fighting together, women and men, young and old. I met people from all economic, social, and educational backgrounds…The original impetus for almost all of the individuals I spoke to was a nationalistic one".
Embedded journalism
Embedded journalism is an obvious source of disinformation. It fosters false optimism regarding US military presence. It means reporters are only present where American troops are active, though US forces seldom venture into much of Iraq. Embedded correspondents bravely covered the storming of Fallujah by US marines last November and portrayed it as a US "military success." (Counter Punch, 16 May 2005).
Other proponents of the Occupation are those who "opposed" the war, but are in favor of America's imperial vision of "democracy". The deceptive argument pushed by the Western media is that the Occupation will lead to "democracy" and help Iraqis. This line of reasoning is also advocated by several alternative media sources. In a recent article in AlterNet which claims to "provide readers with crucial facts and passionate opinions", senior editor of AlterNet, Lakshmi Chaudhry wrote:
"We can't simply turn our backs on the million of Iraqis – who lack basic necessities like, water electricity food or medical care…. It is immoral for us to leave them to die in the cross fire of a violent civil war fuelled by extremists that we created…We must take the president at his word and force him to deliver on the promise of freedom." (AlterNet, 06 January 2005).
In other words, should "Progressives" trust George Bush's "messianic mission" and "stay the course" in Iraq to "promote democracy" and "prevent" civil war; anything short of this, would be "immoral". This lie is from George Bush's own pack of lies. It is not only supported by rightwing pundits and pro-war advocates but also by part of the U.S. Liberal "anti-war" movement, which points to the "insurgents" as the primary source of violence in Iraq. The reality is that the so-called U.S. "democratic occupation", is a euphemism for imperialist occupation and oppression.
The people of Iraq have rejected to live under U.S. Occupation and voted against the U.S. presence in their country.
The Western media distorts what is happening in Iraq in order to provide legitimacy to Washington's agenda.
The majority of Iraqis (nearly 98 per cent) want the U.S. forces to leave their country, and 92 percent of Iraqis see the Americans as imperial occupiers rather than "liberators".
Clearly, Western journalists and pundits have shown that they lack an accurate understanding of Iraq's history and Iraqi society.
Most reports out of Iraq have been from a Western perspective, and rarely from an Iraqi perspective.
It would take Westerners a long time to understand the situation in Iraq today, including the general relationship between Islam and politics. Historically, Islam and politics in Iraq and many other Muslim countries have been inseparable. "Thus, the demand for the separation of religion and state in Muslim countries is more than secularist; it is openly [anti-Islam]", wrote the French academic Gilbert Achcar. Even Saddam Hussein, identified with Islam as part of the battle against imperialism.
Today's Islam, however, is largely secular and concerned more with political and social issues rather than religious.
Unfortunately, the common line among Western media, pundits and politicians alike is always the same: a consistent miscomprehension of Iraqi society and politics. There is also no mention of the roles of the Occupation forces, the CIA and Israeli Mossad agents in orchestrating the current violence against the Iraqi people.
U.S. forces and their allies have needlessly killed tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis. Iraqi men, women and children are routinely imprisoned, abused and tortured, by U.S. forces in daily house-to-house searches, humiliation being conducted by U.S. forces.
The ceaseless attacks and aerial bombings by U.S. forces have destroyed Iraq's infrastructure and people's property. Iraq's education system has been destroyed, health care services are on the brink of total collapse as a result of U.S. war and Occupation.
To defend their country, the Iraqi people have a legitimate right to resist, and use all forms of resistance to this war and occupation. Any resistance to the current imperial aggression is legitimate resistance.
"International law grants a people fighting an illegal occupation the right to use 'all necessary means at their disposal' to end their occupation and the occupied are entitled to seek and receive support".
As I write these lines, U.S. forces are bombing Iraqi civilians in their homes. In the town of Qaim, on the Syrian border, U.S. forces have besieged the town for many days. Residents told IPS by telephone: "all the fighters here are Iraqis from this area". The ongoing abuses by U.S. soldiers had provoked people into confronting the occupying forces. "The fighters are just local people who refuse to be treated like dogs," one resident said. "Nobody wants the Americans here", added another resident. Many innocent civilians have been killed and the city centre "has been almost completely destroyed", including the city hospitals and schools. "[The Americans] are using warplanes, mortar shells and tanks to shell the city indiscriminately, hurt citizens and bomb the houses with warplanes". Like the atrocity of Fallujah, the silence of the Western media is deafening, while Iraqi cities and towns are destroyed one by one.
It appears that the common agenda of Western governments led by the U.S. and Britain is the revival of the old Western colonialism masked in the fake rhetoric of "democracy" and "liberation". Like Western governments, Western media have bought into the so-called "federation of Iraq", a euphemism to divide Iraq into colonies controlled by Western powers.
Once again the media have failed to report the US led policy of ethnic cleansing, conducted by Kurdish terrorist groups from northern Iraq, particularly from the city of Kirkuk. Thousands of Iraqi (Arabs and Turkomans) families, who lived for generations in northern Iraq, are forced by armed Kurdish Peshmerga to flee their homes and seek sanctuaries further south. Today, the ethnic cleansing of Iraqis is comparable to that conducted against the Palestinian people in 1948 by Zionist terrorists. The fact that Israeli commandos are in northern Iraq training the Kurdish militias in the art of land dispossession is a case in point.
Sectarianism and ethnic tensions in Iraq "are not a product of cultural differences. They are the product of a history of imperialism and colonialism in the region and domestic Iraqi politics". "This applies as much to the Arab-Kurd tension as it does to the Sunni-Shias [sic]", wrote Rami El-Amine of Left Turn magazine. Iraq is a mosaic society. "There is no history of communal strife or civil war in Iraq, and the degree of socioeconomic integration and unity of purpose amongst the Iraqi people is often underestimated. There is also a powerful secular tradition in Iraq that transcends all religions and sects", said Dr. Sami Ramadani of London Metropolitan University.
Iraqis are united against the Occupation. If there is any divide, this "divide, already narrower in Iraq than in some parts of the Arab world, is by all accounts shrinking each day that Iraqis agree their most immediate problem is the occupation", wrote The Washington Post correspondent R. Chandrasekaran. Only two years ago, Iraqi Christians, and Muslims lived together in harmony despite their religious and political differences. If there is any division between Iraqis today, the division has been created quite deliberately by the U.S. Occupation.
The April 19, 2005 demonstration of more than 300,000 Iraqis in Baghdad alone (the largest in Iraq for many decades), jointly organized by the Al-Sadr movement and the Association of Muslim Scholars, showed that all Iraqis are united against the US Occupation and terrorism. This unity contradicts the West's perception of Iraqis as a divided society and rejects the occupiers' imperialist policy of 'divide and rule'.
Sadly, neither the "alternative" nor the mainstream media has George Galloway's courage to stand up against an unjust war and tell the truth about Iraq and the crimes committed against the Iraqi people.
As a result of media disinformation, many people in the West, Americans in particular, continue to support an illegal war of "crimes against humanity" perpetuated in their name.
The Western media should follow an ethic of moral responsibility toward the Iraqi people and provide impartial and accurate information to the outside world.
Instead of serving as propaganda agents for imperial power and an unjust war against the Iraqi people's right to self-determination, the Western media would do well to hold the governments behind the US led coalition accountable for this illegal act of aggression.
Those who are responsible for this murderous crime against the Iraqi people should face, with their accomplices, war crimes trials similar to those conducted by the Nuremberg Tribunal.
The only peaceful solution to the chaos in Iraq is the full withdrawal of U.S. forces.
Ordinary Iraqis and the Iraqi Resistance groups will continue to resist the Occupation until the U.S. leaves Iraq. No amount of U.S. firepower will quell the desire of the people of Iraq to achieve sovereignty and national independence.
Global Research Contributing Editor Ghali Hassan has written extensively on political and social issues in Iraq under US occupation. He lives in Perth, Western Australia.
Articles by the author
The Ultimate War Crime, Killing the Children: The Destruction of Iraq's Educational System under US Occupation by Ghali Hassan, 11 May 2005, http://globalresearch.ca/articles/HAS505B.html
Iraqi Women Under US Occupation by Ghali Hassan 6 May 2005, http://globalresearch.ca/articles/HAS505A.html
Imperial Misadventures by Ghali Hassan, 26 January 2005 http://globalresearch.ca/articles/HAS501A.html
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The event, organized by the Manufacturer & Business Association, gets underway Wednesday with the Fallen Riders Memorial Run that departs from Penn State Behrend.
A thunderous roar of motorcycle engines is about to engulf the Erie region.
This week, you can count on seeing legions of bikes parked at hotels, bars, restaurants, campgrounds, shopping malls, Presque Isle State Park and other regional attractions as Roar on the Shore returns for the 12th year.
The event, organized by the Manufacturer & Business Association, gets underway Wednesday with the Fallen Riders Memorial Run that departs from Penn State Behrend, a Faith & Freedom Ride honoring veterans that leaves from Perry Square in downtown Erie, and an 8 p.m. headline concert near Perry Square featuring the Led Zeppelin tribute band Zoso.
What's in store for the remainder of the week? From Thursday through Sunday, there will be another 10 rides, nightly concerts in downtown Erie, more than 100 vendors, motorcycle stunt shows, drawings, motorcycle demonstration rides, daily block parties and a motorcycle giveaway.
"The economic impact in the region is really staggering when you think about it," said Ralph Pontillo, executive director of Roar on the Shore Inc. "It grows each year. Bikers are very generous people. They're also somewhat affluent. There's a whole, wide range of people who ride motorcycles, many of whom are doctors, lawyers and others in professions and who have disposable income.
"They hit the restaurants, hotels and tend to go to other places and visit some of our landmarks," Pontillo said. "I think when we look at direct and indirect impact, it's significant. I've been told that you can't get a hotel room within a 50-mile radius of Erie during Roar on the Shore week. It's packed for five days with people from all over."
Pontillo projects the five-day rally could attract, if weather cooperates, about 170,000 bikers and visitors, and produce an estimated economic impact of $30 million to $35 million for the Erie region.
"The other thing I like a lot is we've designed it where the rides take you to the outlying areas as well," he said. "There are lots of different places and lots of different rides. It does two things. It draws the economic development even farther, and it shows people from out of town just what we have here.
"Our goal in introducing Erie to the bikers is to say, 'You don't need a bike rally to come back, you can come back on your bike, you can spend another week here, go to Presque Isle, go to Waldameer and all those wonderful sites,'" Pontillo said.
Getting a hotel room in Erie County this week could be difficult to impossible. Most of Erie County's 4,400 hotel rooms will likely be booked by Roar on the Shore visitors and those who are visiting Erie for other summer tourism activities, said Jon Oliver, executive director of VisitErie, Erie County's tourism promotion agency.
"Some visitors may have to secure a room in Crawford County or Chautauqua County," Oliver said. "This is an extremely busy week, not only for lodging but for restaurants and hotels and other tourism places. Every visitor is spending money in our community on food, accommodations, shopping, and visiting other attractions. That is a sizeable economic impact on the entire region."
Pontillo said the Roar on the Shore rally has made the Erie region a place where bikers and visitors want to take their vacations.
"It's becoming a destination from Canada as well, which, I think, has great potential for us," Pontillo said. "Canadians love to come across the border, and we are a shopping mecca for them here because of the sales tax issue and all the great retail stores we have here."
Bikers will kick off Wednesday's Roar on the Shore activities with the Fallen Riders Memorial Run, which stages from 2 to 6 p.m. at Penn State Behrend ($20 per bike); and the Faith & Freedom Ride, which stages from 5 to 6 p.m. at Perry Square in downtown Erie ($20 per bike, free for veterans).
The Fallen Riders Memorial Run will route bikers through portions of Harborcreek and North East townships before finishing at Perry Square.
Thursday's annual Bringin' in the Roar parade from Presque Isle Downs & Casino, 8199 Perry Highway, in Summit Township, represents the five-day rally's signature and most popular event.
The ride stages in the casino's parking lots from late morning until its 6 p.m. departure. Previous Bringin' in the Roar rides have attracted from 3,000 to more than 5,000 bikes. Donation is $25 per bike.
Rick Harrison, who stars in the television series "Pawn Stars," will lead the parade as grand marshal. Harrison in April committed to serving as the ride's grand marshal after "American Pickers" television star Frank Fritz canceled due to a conflict with his television production schedule.
Pontillo said he believes that Harrison's friendship with Danny Koker, a former Roar on the Shore grand marshal whose band also has played at Roar events, helped organizers land Harrison.
"Rick is good friends with Danny Koker," Pontillo said. "Danny Koker is a preacher who also married Rick Harrison and his wife. My guess is when we got the information to Rick's representatives, they always ask us who else has done this and we put Danny Koker's name first. You can bet a phone call was made."
An estimated 20,000 to 25,000 spectators will line the parade route, Pontillo said.
"The first year we did it, we were stunned by the number of people on the parade route," Pontillo said. "All we wanted to do was take a big ride into downtown Erie, and we knew when we got to downtown it would be crowded because it's the Hub. What we weren't expecting was the amount of people all along the parade route. That was incredible. Every year, that crowd grows bigger, bigger and bigger, and it's getting more patriotic. It's all about American flags and America. It's now a themed event."
Friday's Roar on the Shore agenda features Erie Mayor Joe Schember's Thunder on the Isle: The Mayor's Ride around Presque Isle State Park.
Registration and staging will be held from 3:30 to 5 p.m. at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center parking lots, 301 Peninsula Drive, in Millcreek Township. Donation is $20 per bike.
Several hundred bikers usually participate in the event.
"That ride will expose some 500 bikers to the Tom Ridge Environmental Center and what the TREC has to offer," Pontillo said.
Schember will ride in a three-wheel slingshot vehicle, Pontillo said.
"If we don't have the city involved and if we don't have the city's blessing, we don't have an event," Pontillo said. "That ride is designed to honor whoever the mayor is and to say thank you from the community. It's one of the more popular rides."
Roar on the Shore's headline concert performers at the main stage near Perry Square are Zoso, a Led Zeppelin tribute band, Wednesday night; L.A. Guns Thursday night; The Outlaws Friday night; and Cinderella's Tom Keifer Saturday night.
One of the rally's top entertainment draws is motorcycle stunt rider Jason Britton, who will perform multiple shows on Friday and Saturday near Roar's downtown Hub at Perry Square.
Pontillo said discussion continues about expanding Roar on the Shore to a seven-day rally.
"As it gets bigger and longer, it will draw national support," he said. "There's just no doubt in my mind. I've seen it happen to other events. It's part of the growth pattern. We have to continue to maintain local sponsors and have a local identity because it is the community. The other piece is the city of Erie, the mayor, and the community need to embrace the event. When they cease to embrace it, it will cease to exist. That's just the reality of the situation."
Roar organizers estimated the 2017 rally pumped about $25 million into Erie's economy and attracted about 165,000 bikers and visitors to the region.
"We work very hard at making sure that Roar on the Shore maintains a certain operation level and certain decorum," Pontillo said. "So far, judging from the number of people who come out for the parade, judging from the number of people who come downtown and don't even ride a bike, we're doing exactly that. If you keep doing that year after year, it will grow organically. It just has to."


Subsized preschool for 3- and 4-year olds on the site of Foothill Elementary. Program promotes development of social and motor skills and readiness for kindergarten.
Pittsburg USD (Foothill State Preschool) is a licensed daycare center.


Soller valley, or the "Golden Valley", as it is known.
In this wonderful valley we´ve found our second home. It is also here where we go to gather power and energy when the battery light turns red.
Soller valley, with the main town, Soller, is a world by itself with a near subtropical climate and framed by the powerful Tramuntana Mountains, which is unique. Soller and Port de Soller are located below Mallorcas highest mountain range, Puig Mayor.
The picturesque villages of Biniaraix and Fornalutx, which have been selected as the most beautiful and best preserved village in Spain, are within walking distance.
Many spectacular and beautiful hiking trails start in Soller valley.
The most famous is Barranc de Biniaraix, which starts in the small village, Biniaraix.
In the valley there´s close proximity to the sea and the stunning mountains with its beauty and incredible variety of hiking trails, nature, mountain peaks, valleys and infinitely more to filling the mind with.
The valley is called Jardin d'Espagne, the garden of Spain, and here you´ll find the best oranges, lemons and grapefruits in Mallorca.
The terraced orange groves with its amazing irrigation systems, is a legacy of the Arab conquerors, which gave the valley the name Suliar, which means yellow peel.
The valley is not only famous for its citrus groves. It´s also known for its olive groves located in impressive stone terraces created by human power since ancient times. The oldest olive trees in the valley are believed to be over a thousand years. An amazing thought.
The most common tree in Mallorca is the almond tree. Seven million trees grows on the island. Even the Soller valley has had its fair share.
Viewing almond trees bloom with their light pink flowers at the beginning of the year is a fantastic experience.
It was the Arabs who introduced the almond tree on Mallorca. In the year of 903 the moors planted the first tree on the island. However, it is not Arab's merit that there are so many almond trees on the island.
The reason for the large number of trees is wine lice. In 1890 Mallorca was struck by wine lice and only a few years later all grape vines were dead. The peasants had to feed on something else and many of them replaced the wine with almond.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, many locals drove trade with France and sold oranges, olive oil and textiles via the harbor in Port de Soller.
The people of the Soller valley had very little contact with the rest of the island over the past few centuries. Own port rights from the 16th century created contacts on the other side of the Mediterranean. When there was war and bad times for trade with agricultural products and fruits, the population of the valley became twice as affected. In most families, the young men went to America.
After the first world war, one decided to focus strongly in exports of oranges. The boats went overfilled to Barcelona and to cities in the southern of France. With the oranges followed some men who then remained and created family abroad.
As a curiosity it is mentioned that today, second and third generation fruit traders can be found in both Marseille and Paris.
A large part of the people in the valley speaks French, as the contact now continues with relatives and friends in both directions. A special culture has been created in the Soller valley.
You´ll find a sample of the Soller valley, click here.


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Home/Business/Free zones send the stop – Colombia
Free zones send the stop – Colombia
Charles Dickens Business
In Colombia today there are 112 free zones, of which 47 were approved in the previous government, according to the balance presented by Daniel Arango, exviceministro
of business development of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism, during the first congress is. Integrated free zones (ZF) and ports, held in Cartagena
of India in the first half of this year.
In this event organized by the Chamber of Free Zone users, the
Maritime and Port Chamber and Logistics and Infrastructure Management of the Andi, Arango said that the export of the FTZ in the last seven year increased by 10 percent from 2,047 in 2010 to 2 252,4 million dollars in 2017.
Also in this period, the number of companies installed in the ZF doubled from 450 in 2010 up to 900 last year. There was also an increase of 400 percent in the number of jobs generated on these sites.
According to a free-zone statistical report from the Freez Zone Freezers Room from December 2017 of the 112 ZF, 39, permanent free zones (ZFP); 69, Special Permanent Free Zones (ZFPE) and 4, Permanent Free Zones Offshore (ZFP CA). In this panorama section, the Atlantic Coast
declare 41 with ZF, of which 4 is specified for Law 1004 of 2005 in this region of the country, 2 in Bolívar, 1 in Atlántico and 1 in Magdalena, according to a report from the Free Zone Intersectorial Commission (ZF) – Secretariat
Then 8 ZF was created in the Atlantic Ocean, of which 3 are ZFP and 5 ZFPE; Bolívar has 17 ZF, 6 ZFP and 11 ZFPE; Magdalena has 7 ZF, 4 ZFP and 3 ZFPE, warns the report of the Chamber of Free Zone Users of the Andi.
Meanwhile, the Intersectoral Commission of ZF points out that in La Guajira two zones
are francs: one is a ZFP and another, a ZFPE; in Cesar, a ZFPE; Córdoba, two ZFPE and four is ZFP CA, on the coast.
In the Colombian Caribbean Islands, 18 ZF operates from the industrial sector, followed by services, a total of 15 and agro-industries, reaching 3. Additionally, the 4 overseas and other generation of energy should be added.
Among those in the services sector, the Integrated Medicine University Clinic in Córdoba, and whose operation is managed by the Zona Franca de Bogotá.
On the scale of this kind of ZF, Diego Vargas, General Manager of Zona Franca, the Bogotá Enterprise of the ZFB Group – and who as an assistant in the VI International Fair of the Salud Meditech 2018 noted: "The free zones of the health sector have developed considerably due to the benefits attributed to customs, tax and foreign trade initiatives by
so that they can invest their resources in property infrastructure, including the acquisition of modern technological equipment, with the aim to provide high-quality health services and generate
national and international competitiveness. "
It is necessary to emphasize that several of these projects from clinics or hospitals, indicate Vargas, use the incentives of the free regime that their ease of construction, in addition to the investment and operation of their machines, high-tech technical and technological tools without the requirement of customs duties. "Our main concern is to continue the contribution to this sector
with profitability in prices and it is reflected in the service to patients," noted Vargas.
The free regime, which owns 13 companies in Colombia. of health services, this sector has provided competitiveness by allowing for the implementation of the latest physical and technological infrastructure, due to the incentives in customs, tax and foreign trade provided to the
companies installed there . These benefits have so far allowed to accumulate an investment of 1.2 billion pesos, in addition to stimulating participation and investment in the sector, providing qualified staff and promoting health assistance with new procedures.
Offshore [19659013] The latest figure created by the National Government is the ZFP CA, whose latest tax reform provides that the exploration of foreign hydrocarbons can function with the tax benefits of the special free zones, which are spontaneously motivated. According to Information from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism is the free zones the engines of regional development, important generators, key chains for the productive chain in the
. ] Foreign Exploration
Motivated by the tax benefits provided by this mechanism, four companies of the hydrocarbon sector operating foreign exploration work in the Colombian Caribbean have received government support to function as ZFP CA.
They are Anadarko, Ecopetrol, Petrobras and Repsol. According to information provided by the room of users of the free territories of the Andi, although the free zones of Anadarko, Ecopetrol and Repsol are located in Cundinamarca, their base is in Barranquilla operations. In the case of Petrobras, its foundation is on Santa Marta.
In the past, Expo Oil & Gas 2017, the specialized hydrocarbon sector, President of the Colombian Chamber of Petroleum Goods and Services (Campetrol), Germán Espinosa, explained that "the tax reform will help to increase investments because It's high: abroad can well be allocated $ 100 million a day while investing in a country of 10 to 20 days between 2 and 5 million dollars. "
One of the key points the ZF offers is the generation of employment. According to the Andi Free Zone Users' Room, the 112 ZF totaled 307,447 direct, indirect and related jobs, figures representing the contribution of the Kus 60,643.
Among the more posts of the work that contribute to the economy of the coast, the ZFPE Puerto Brisa, with 14,585 jobs, followed by Gecelca, with 7.226; ZFPE Clínica Porto Azul S.A., with 5,211; ZFP from Barranquilla, 4,017; Cartagena S. A. ZFPE refinery (Reficar), 3.840; Tayrona, 3.070
This list continues with the Serena Hospital Center of the Sea S. A., 1.546; Contecar SA, 1,491; Extractora La Gloria S.A.S., 1.484; Central Park, 1,467; ZF Candelaria, 1,438; Palermo, 1323 and Extractor Loma Fresca south of Bolívar S.A., 1075.
Those with the largest area are ZF Brisa, 354 ha; Zophia, 120 ha; Candelaria, 116
ha; La Cayena, 112 ha. Among the largest number of companies installed, Barranquilla, with 78 and Candelaria, is 54. And among those who mobilize more metric tons
are Dexton, with 867,361, Barranquilla, 806,027; Candelaria, 741,526 and La Cayena, 365,110.
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Willa Weil has a secret—she comes from a long line of magicians trained to unlock the power hidden within poetry. This skill requires discipline, and the Guild demands obedience. Willa has long kept her power to herself, but when a molten metal creature threatens to consume her friends, she can no longer remain on the sidelines.
History professor Elijah Branton moved to Pittsburgh for the job of a lifetime, researching the family history of one of the nation's wealthiest and most attractive CEOs. But not everything is as it seems in the Steel City. The historian soon unearths a deadly conspiracy that threatens to unravel his world.
Can they save their city, or will they lose themselves in the process.


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Thomas Sackville (1536 – 19 april 1608) was een Engels staatsman en dichter. Evenals zijn vader, Sir Richard Sackville, was hij jurist. Hij studeerde aan de universiteiten van Oxford en Cambridge.

Toen hij werkzaam was als advocaat bij de 'Inner Temple' in Londen schreef hij samen met Thomas Norton de tragedie Gorboduc. Ander werk van Sackville omvat de Induction en The Complaint of Henry Duke of Buckingham. Delen van het eerstgenoemde werk komen nog altijd voor in bloemlezingen.

Sackville werd lid van het Engelse parlement in 1558. In 1567 werd hij door koningin Elizabeth I in de adelstand verheven, waarna hij zich Lord Bockhurst mocht noemen. In 1604 werd hij, als dank voor zijn vele verdiensten voor de staat, benoemd tot 1e Graaf van Dorset. Hij was onder andere ambassadeur voor de Nederlanden.

Referenties

Engels schrijver

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Kate Middleton speaks out about children's mental health
By MiNDFOOD	| September 19, 2017
The Duchess of Cambridge with Princess Charlotte.
In the Duchess of Cambridge's first appearance since her pregnancy announcement, she encourages families to talk openly with one another about their feelings.
Kate Middleton returned to the public eye today in a video launching the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families' new campaign, "You're never too young to talk mental health."
The video aims to educate families and children on the importance of talking about mental health, as well as strategies for coping with low moods, anxiety and depression. "It helps us all talk about our mental health," Kate says, urging people to speak out when feelings get "too big to manage on our own."
She also implores people to check in with those around them. "Sometimes it's just a simple conversation that can make things better," she states.
The Duchess has actively supported mental health awareness throughout her time with the royal family. In 2016 she fronted the Heads Together campaign with Prince William and Prince Harry, and released a video for Children's Mental Health Week addressing the need for discussion on mental health issues.
The video, filmed earlier this year, is Kate's first public appearance since her pregnancy announcement earlier this month.
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The National Infantry Museum is the only museum in the country dedicated to the American Infantryman and preserves one of the greatest collections of military artifacts. This state-of-the-art facility tells the story of the United States Army Infantryman, from the fields of the American Revolution to the sands of Afghanistan. The museum houses an amazing display of artifacts from all eras of American history and contains numerous interactive multimedia exhibits, telling the story of our nation's past with the latest in technological innovation. For more information go to http://www.nationalinfantrymuseum.org. Trip Advisor, the world's largest travel site, rates the National Infantry Museum as the highest rated attraction in the State of Georgia. The Soldier Marathon and Half Marathon start and finish at the National Infantry Museum, and packet pickup, the expo and the pasta dinner are also located at the National Infantry Museum.
Stroll, bike, or run along the 15 miles of paved walkway that runs along the banks of the Chattahoochee River. Several of the sites/activities mentioned here are visible from the RiverWalk. For a map go to visitcolumbusga.com/visitors/attractions/chattahoochee_riverwalk.


Like any modern woman, I'm a big fan of taking selfies. They give me the opportunity to show myself at the best angle, with the most flattering lighting and the occasional Instagram filter. Now I'm not talking about being vain or self-obsessed, but being creative and sharing photos with friends.
As much as I enjoy photographing myself, the thought of being the other side of the camera has always made me feel excited and terrified in equal measure. So when I decided to have a portrait taken, I went to Charlotte from Steve Hampshire Photography.
From the minute I arrived for my contemporary portrait session, I instantly felt at ease. Any anxiety I'd felt beforehand was gone as Steve and Charlotte showed me to their studio.
With a bag full of my favourite outfits, Charlotte kindly helped me get ready and the three of us decided together which order I should wear my outfits in.
It was time for me to step into the spotlight. We chatted throughout the session, Steve directing me into a variety of natural poses against different backdrops, with the addition of a wind machine! There wasn't one second where I felt awkward, Steve continued to reassure me and kept the session flowing.
When you don't know what you're doing, it's so important to work with a photographer who does! I came away with a great set of photos, some suitable for my LinkedIn profile and others for social media.
The edits and Photoshop work is so subtle you can hardly tell it's been done – a complete contrast to my previous experience. I'm so impressed and happy with the photos.
After my fabulously fun session, the last thing I want to do is take a selfie. Getting professional photos done makes you feel like a million dollars and you'll have great photos to show for it too.


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Investment & Trade in the News
Home » Investment & Trade in the News
(The Guardian) - Burma's investment rush is leaving the poor majority behind
"Fewer than 30% of people in Burma have access to electricity, and investment is vital. But the danger is this will come at the expense of the poor." Read more...
(Global Post) - Japanese investments are driving human rights abuses in Myanmar
"Developers are building Thilawa on many of the same human rights violations that paved the way for the notorious China-backed Myitsone Dam and Shwe Gas Pipeline. But this time, the international community isn't protesting as it watches Japanese auto darlings Mitsubishi, Marubeni, and Sumitomo set up camp on the confiscated land of Myanmar families." Read more...
(Irrawaddy) - Dawei Village to Sue Thai Mining Firm Over Environmental Impacts
"On Sunday, the villagers said they would now 'seek justice and ask that our rights be respected in a peaceful way by filing a court case to No. (2) Mining Enterprise and Myanmar Pongpipat company Ltd. who are responsible for damages in our village.'" Read more...
(Irrawaddy) - Telcoms Seen Taking Growing Share of Burma's FDI Pie
"I do expect that a full 20 percent of foreign investment will go to the telecoms sector this year, [and] more in the year after. It may become the number one investment in Burma." Read more...
(Irrawaddy) - US Exim Bank Raises Hopes in Burma With Credit Offer
"Foreign investors are considering their options in Burma's largely untapped consumer market. The country boasts plenty of natural resources, including gas and oil, and a strategic location bordering China and India. However, experts predict that investors will likely remain cautious this year, as the country's political situation remains far from certain ahead of the 2015 elections." Read more...
(DVB) - Telecom investments threaten privacy rights in Burma
"The World Bank should be the leader – not the resistance – in designing investments that reflect public priorities and uphold international human rights standards. Burma's people welcome telecom development, but not at the cost of empowering the government to further violate basic rights." Read more...
(RFA) - World Bank Pledges $2 Billion in Aid to Myanmar
"The World Bank has unveiled a new U.S. $2 billion aid deal for Myanmar for electricity and health care projects, saying that spending will be monitored carefully to prevent corruption." Read more...
(Reuters) - US to ease Myanmar sanction, open relations
"The United States said on Wednesday it was ready to relax some sanctions on Myanmar to recognize its fledgling democratic transition, including a ban on U.S. companies investing in or offering financial services to the country." Read more...
(Guardian UK) - Barack Obama appoints Derek Mitchell as first US ambassador to Burma
"The Obama administration has signalled a warming of relations between the US and Burma with the easing of trade restrictions and the appointment of an ambassador." Read more...
(AFP) - US opens up investment in Myanmar
"The United States gave the green light to companies to invest in Myanmar including in oil and gas, in its broadest and most controversial easing yet of sanctions on the former pariah." Read more...
(VOA) - US to Lift Burma Import Ban
"U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Washington will take steps to lift a ban on imports from Burma in response to continued reforms by the country's military-backed government." Read more...
(Reuters) - Myanmar state media details new foreign investment law
"Myanmar's new foreign investment law allows overseas firms to fully own ventures and offers tax breaks and lengthy land leases, state media said on Saturday, releasing details of legislation passed by parliament this week after a long delay." Read more...
(BBC) - US lifts Burma imports ban ahead of Obama visit
"The US has lifted a decade-old ban on most imports from Burma, ahead of a historic visit by President Obama." Read more...
(New York Times) - Myanmar and World Bank Sign Deal to Clear Old Debt
"The World Bank on Sunday announced a long-awaited deal to allow Myanmar to clear part of its huge decades-old foreign debt, opening the door for lending to jump-start its lagging economy." Read more...
(Reuters) - U.S. gives banking green light to Myanmar tycoons
"Two banks owned by tycoons associated with Myanmar's former military regime will start to do business with U.S. companies and investors in the latest reward for the Southeast Asian country's rapid political transformation." Read more...
(Reuters) - Myanmar invites bids for 30 offshore oil, gas blocks
"Myanmar said it would open bidding in June for the exploration and development of 11 shallow and 19 deep-sea oil and gas blocks, in only the second bidding round since the easing of U.S. sanctions against the gas-rich country." Read more...
(BBC) - EU lifts sanctions against Burma
"The European Union has lifted the last of its trade, economic and individual sanctions against Burma in response to its political reform programme." Read more...
(Reuters) - U.S. could waive duties on imports from Myanmar
"The United States is reviewing trade relations with Myanmar in a move that could end import duties on thousands of goods from the Southeast Asian country, which Acting U.S. Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis is due to visit on Wednesday." Read more...
(Reuters) - U.S. lifts more sanctions on Myanmar to support reforms
"The United States on Thursday lifted another set of sanctions against Myanmar to support reforms in the formerly army-ruled country, while retaining visa and investment bans against individuals accused of human rights abuses." Read more...
(AFP) - U.S. lifts more sanctions on Myanmar to support reforms
"A key US senator on Tuesday backed an end to US sanctions on Myanmar after a landmark visit by the country's reformist leader, signaling a new normalization in relations despite rights concerns." Read more...
(Irrawaddy) - ILO Lifts All Restrictions on Burma
"The International Labor Organization (ILO) announced that it will lift its remaining restrictions on Burma, in a move that Burma's government hopes will boost trade and increase foreign investment as the country's economy continues to open after decades of isolation." Read more...
(AFP) - Myanmar awards mobile licences to Telenor, Ooredoo
"Myanmar on Thursday awarded telecom licences to Norway's Telenor and Qatari firm Ooredoo, the government committee in charge of the bids said, opening up one of the world's last virtually untapped mobile phone markets." Read more...
(U.S. Department of Treasury) - Treasury Designates Burmese LT. General Thein Htay, Chief of Directorate of Defense Industries
" The U.S. Department of the Treasury designated Lt. General Thein Htay, the head of Burma's Directorate of Defense Industries (DDI), pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13619, which targets those involved in arms trading between North Korea and Burma." Read more...
(Global Post) - EU formally reopens market to Myanmar
"The European Union formally reinstates preferential trade terms for Myanmar on Friday following the country's efforts to improve the political situation as well as its labour and social systems." Read more...
(Irrawaddy) - Trade with Myanmar Key Part of US Pivot to Asia
"Is there a pivotal link between the United States' concerns over China's assertiveness in the South China Sea and inroads into the Indian Ocean and bids from the US to expand Yangon's airport and improve the roads between Myanmar's main commercial city and Mandalay?" Read more...
(Reuters) - U.S. updates Myanmar sanctions to maintain gem import ban
" The United States updated sanctions on Myanmar on Wednesday to maintain a ban on importing rubies and jade amid a relaxation of curbs on U.S. trade with the Southeast Asian nation, American officials said." Read more...
(Irrawady) - Major US Companies Slow to Report Burma Investments
"More than two months after the United States published the first reports by American companies investing in Burma, big name brands such as Cisco, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Visa remain absent from the filings, which are posted on the website of the US Embassy in Burma." Read more...
← Investment & Trade


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Qasr Hur () is a village in the governorate of Minya, Egypt, around 300 km south of Cairo, on the edge of the Western Desert. The village is predominantly Muslim with a small Christian minority. The Coptic Orthodox priest of Qasr Hur  Father Matias Kamal has been tending the ruined church of the Monastery of Abu Fanah now, and since the mid eighties of the 20th The Coptic Orthodox priest of used to be responsible for the Monastery.

Official Website : https://www.qasrhur.com

Villages in Egypt
Western Desert (Egypt)
Populated places in Minya Governorate


Finishing up the last remnants of the day's work, I glance at the clock and see that it is past 5:30. I walk over and tell my boss that I am leaving for the night. "Have a great weekend!" she remarks, as always. I laugh to myself as I walk away . . . if only she knew. I step outside in to a brisk and windy Friday evening. With daylight fading rapidly, I quicken my pace across the parking lot. The twists and turns on the back roads to Amherst aren't much fun in the dark. Or is it anticipation of the night to come that makes me nearly run to my car? Whatever the reason, as I get in to my car and hit the road, the Péché Mortel at the end of the tunnel suddenly seems much closer.
Unfortunately, I make a wrong turn and lose about 30 minutes of time. I won't tell you with what words my shouts were filled at this point. Finally, after driving at unsafe speeds, stopping for directions twice and phoning the Moan and Dove once, I careen in to their parking lot, jump out of my car and sprint to the entrance. At this point, it is 8:30. The Shelton Brothers website lists the event as starting at 8:00 and running out quickly ("So be there at 8:00 because by 8:15, you'll be back to drinking that same old over-hopped pale ale"). So, enter one, frantic, out-of-breath beer-geek, fearing for the worst.
To my great, great, great relief (worthy of more than three greats, but I won't bore you with repeating the same word hundreds of times), the Péché Mortel is here, and is not even ready yet. "Yes" says the bartender, "you've got time for a beer before it starts." Well, hot damn! I think I'll have me a Cantillon Jonge Lambik 2002! At that point, only five raters in North America had rated it, three of whom had it on draught at the Cantillon brewery, in Belgium. Being a lover of all things lambic, and especially Cantillon, I did not even look at what my other choices were. In fact, I had been tortured by the Moan and Dove's draught list all week. Seeing that they had the Jonge Lambik on draught, by browsing their site on the Internet, I immediately wondered if it would make it until Friday night.
I had been close to this beer before (it was supposed to be on draught at the Belgian Beer Fest in Boston, last summer) and it had escaped me (they sent a keg of Lou Pepe Framboise instead, by mistake). A call to the bar, earlier in the week, helped assuage my fears that it would be there come Friday, but I was still uneasy with waiting. In my experience, when a beer of this rarity has been sighted, you drop what you are doing and go get it, or risk missing it, perhaps for good. But it was in the stars this time, and before long, I had this beauty in my glass (and only lightly chilled too!). Beer in hand, I take a much needed deep breath followed by an even more needed, deep drink. Elegant in its simplicity and tremendously refreshing, I am an instant fan. With a couple of years under its belt, the lambic is less sour, with a more mellow yeastiness. There are plenty of light cheese and barnyard notes, with an ever so slight hint of green apples on the end. The carbonation is low, but surprisingly, still noticeable. I had been expecting a flat lambic, as was the Bruocsella. As much as I try to accustom myself to the flatness of the Bruocsella, I can't deny that I much prefer some carbonation. But in the end, I decide that they both have their time and place, and happily down the rest of my glass.
The bartender asks how the Cantillon is, and after chatting with him for a few minutes, I ask where the brewers from Dieu du Ciel are. He points me in their direction, and with nothing else to do at the moment (I couldn't find Casey (DYCSoccer17 on Ratebeer)), I head over to introduce myself to the brewers. Sitting at their table is a woman who has a pad of paper out and is taking notes on what seems to be an informal interview with Jean François, one of the brewer/owners and the creator of that for which we are all gathered. I try to listen, but amidst the noise, I only catch glimpses of what she is asking him. I garner that it is a piece on the whole process that has brought Péché Mortel in to the spotlight. Soon, she wraps up her interview and I am left standing there with a table full of the Dieu du Ciel crew.
I hadn't really thought about how I was going to introduce myself to them, but seizing the opportunity to speak with Jean François, I blurt out, quite dumbly, "Hello, are all of you brewers at Dieu du Ciel?" Brilliant one, Clark, that'll really get 'em talking . . .. But J.F. (Jean François) responds very politely with what I already know: three brewers and two of their friends, one of whom is also a waiter at Dieu du Ciel. So I quickly add that I'm very excited to try their beer and, in fact, will be going up to Montreal next weekend to go to their brewery. I then ask if there is any chance that I could try a small sample of the Quintessence while there, and J.F. just smiles and says that is quite a rarity these days. Thinking back, this comment may have come across as ungrateful, in light of what I was already going to get the chance to try. Aside from the Péché Mortel, the brewers had generously brought down a small amount of Aphrodisiaque, Rigor Mortis Abt, Cuvée de l'Alchemiste Saison and Charbonnière. As I am talking to J.F., the bartender running the event comes over to ask J.F. to stand up and say a little about the beers he had brought; an introduction before the festivities commenced.
To make a long story short, J.F. happily obliged and gave a very informative speech about Dieu du Ciel and the beers they had brought. Before I knew it, I was standing at the bar with a full bottle (660mL) of Péché Mortel. I wandered back over to chat with the brewers and ran in to, of all people, Will Shelton, whom I had just emailed about the release of Cantillon's Cuvée des Champions. Noticing the large bottle of Péché Mortel in my hand, he inquired as to how I was getting home. I hadn't thought about it, but would have to take a cab to a hotel, the way things were going. Without hesitation, he said, "You don't want to do that, the hotels are expensive around here, you can come and crash at my place." Wow. The night was getting better and better. He introduced me to his brother, Dan and soon I was lost in pleasant conversation with Will, Dan, J.F., and Patricia (one of the three owners at Dieu du Ciel). I couldn't get over how approachable, easy-going and down to earth all of these people were. I talked, for what seemed like an hour, with J.F. concerning saisons, his brewing, his visits to Belgium and the beer he had brought here. I talked with Dan and Will about the importing business, Cantillon, Fantome and many other breweries. I then talked with Patricia about her likes and dislikes of the American brewers (she was a big fan of Smuttynose; my kind of woman). I feel like I could have talked with these people all night and then some. It amazes me the sheer ease with which one beer-geek can talk to another. But enough, for now, about the conversation.
Over the course of the night, I would drink two bottles of the Péché Mortel and try a sample of each of the four draught beers, going back for seconds of the Charbonnière and the Aphrodisiaque (I would have gone back for thirds, and fourths, and fifths of the Aphrodisiaque, but it ran out quickly). I finally found Casey (dycsoccer17) sitting at the bar and, interestingly, we both had similar estimations of the beer. The Aphrodisiaque, without question, was the star of the show. The rich, silky, luscious body showcased a wonderfully balanced caramel and chocolate sweetness with just a hint of vanilla to dry it out. No dry, astringent cocoa powder notes here, just rich, creamy malt without being cloying. J.F. telling me that it was only five percent alcohol was almost too much to believe. This is, probably, the best example that I know of a full-bodied, rich, malty beer that doesn't incorporate gobs of alcohol. The Péché Mortel was somewhat underwhelming. Was it all of the hype and the high expectations I couldn't help but have? Probably, but as well, we both found it to be extremely heavy on the coffee with only a medium body, a bit thin at the end. Another gem of the night, J.F.'s saison was deliciously drinkable. Quite hoppy (but saaz hops, so I loved it) with a lightly sweet pilsner malt base and generous coriander notes throughout. As with the other three on draught, it had a fabulous, creamy, aerated texture.
I could tell J.F. was particularly proud of the saison, as he tried to downplay its quality before I tried it, saying it was probably too sweet. I think those things, which I am most modest about, are many times things of which I am most proud. J.F. proved to be extremely knowledgeable in saisons, it being one of his favorite styles. He told me that he preferred them fresh and young at the brewery, which brought me, quickly, to the defense of aged beers. I said that while some were no doubt wonderful fresh, one of my favorites was . . . and then I blanked on the name. Embarrassed that I couldn't even remember my supposed favorite saison, I thought hard and told him it would come to me in a second. Unfortunately, I couldn't think of the damned thing. J.F., polite to the extreme, asked me to describe it. I quickly said, "Very cheesy flavor." He thought for a second and the first beer he named was Pipaix. "That's the one!" I exclaimed. Color me impressed with J.F. Another humorous moment in our conversation occurred when I asked him if he had a favorite saison. He said that he loves Saison Dupont. To me, however, his French accent made it sound as if he was saying, "Saison Spont". I asked him to repeat it, and finally understood what he was saying. Saison Dupont indeed! What a fabulous brewery.
Later that night we would try the Saison Moinette, all agreeing that it was terribly good on draught. I walked over to talk with the Patricia, feeling I had taken up enough of J.F.'s time, though he is far too polite to ever admit it. The night was still young, with plenty more intriguing beer-talk to be had, and one of the best surprises left to drink.


The Mexican painter Frida Kahlo is now regarded as one of the most significant artists of the twentieth century. Severely injured in a bus crash in her youth, she took up painting when confined to her bed. Her life was changed forever by the accident and the portrayal of her body, wracked with pain, is a recurring theme in her paintings.
Combining theatre, live music and dance to create a spectacular experience that engages and interacts with the audience, bringing them into the world of the play.
Using the tastes of Mexico City, the vision of her work, the aroma of her time and the feel of the moment, Interplay create an effecting and moving portrayal of an artist who transcended her disability to make herself the work of art.
I was completely blown away. It was incredible. Stunning and so moving. From the moment we all arrived in the room right through to leaving was just fantastic. I have never been to anything like that before in my life. It was visually stunning, the music was so beautiful, the whole thing was amazing.


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Bobby Portis has been with the Wizards for about a month after joining them in a Feb. 6 trade, and of the nine games he's played for Washington, six were on the road. That has left about eight or so days for him to spend in his new city, to get acclimated to his new surroundings.
He is also still trying to learn everybody's name. He has his teammates down. But beyond them, there are some gaps.
"That's tough, man," he told NBC Sports Washington. "I know some of the coaches' names, but I just say 'coach,' just so I don't get the names mixed up. But that's [also tough]. If I say just 'coach,' then everybody puts their head up."
Portis and the Wizards are in an interesting spot as far as their potential future together goes. The Wizards made a collection of trades in early February to free up salary cap room. They got under the luxury tax and set themselves up to have money to spend this summer.
Portis, 23, is a restricted free agent. The Wizards could choose to retain him, either by working out a new contract or by matching an offer from another team. Or, they could let him go and use the money elsewhere.
Though Portis could be limited by restricted free agency, he will enter the offseason with some freedom to choose where he wants to play for the first time in his career.
The final stretch of this season is essentially a trial period for both sides. If it works, maybe the Wizards keep Portis. If it doesn't, the two sides will move on.
For Portis, the match has been good so far.
"Everything is pretty good, man. I like being a Wizard. I love being here," he said. "I think this is a good fit for me through and through."
Portis has been impressed so far with the training staff and the nutrition program, in particular. As far as basketball goes, it's still very early.
Portis has had some good moments through nine games. He's averaging 15.3 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals while shooting 43.2 percent from three. Three times already he has topped 20 points and five times he has reached double digits in rebounds.
He has mostly played well, but the Wizards can't exactly pencil him in beyond this season. They also have Thomas Bryant set to enter restricted free agency and it doesn't seem likely they will keep both of them. They haven't shared the court much due to redundancies in their game and the Wizards will only have so much money to spend this summer.
The Wizards, though, may have reasons to keep Portis, depending on the price. For one, they gave up a lot to get him by trading Otto Porter Jr. They also got Jabari Parker in the deal, but seem likely to opt out of his contract for 2019-20. Keeping Portis would give them value for Porter beyond just a third of one season.
Also, even if the Wizards clear a bunch of money by renouncing free agents and opting out of Parker's deal, there is no guarantee they could sign the top players available. Portis is probably in the tier of players they would be able to sign. He's a realistic target, is young and could present intriguing upside at a position of need.
Ultimately, the money will be important for Portis, who will be seeking his first non-rookie contract. But he does prefer a big market after playing in Chicago and now Washington.
"I was a small town guy growing up, but now I think I'm a big city guy. It's kind of hard to go from Chicago or Washington something much smaller than these two," he said. "I love the big city. There's always a lot of things to do. I don't really like being home like I used to. I don't watch TV."
The Wizards and Portis may prove a match beyond this season, or not. The next month will help both sides figure it out.
MORE WIZARDS NEWS:
A Young Ray?: Beal living up to Ray Allen comparisons at this point in his career
Rod Strickland: Download the MyTeams App to see our mini-documentary
White Mamba on Beal: Bradley shows shades of Black Mamba
Beal's Amazing Play: Implications for future contract
Troy Brown Jr.: Has he finally found his role with Wizards?


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Technologies & SolutionsManagementCybersecuritySecurity Enterprise ServicesSecurity Leadership and ManagementLogical SecuritySecurity & Business ResilienceCybersecurity News
5 minutes with Otavio Freire – How 'soft attacks' are exploiting human connection
By Maria Henriquez
Attacks within digital communications channels (like Slack, TEAMS, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn) have grown more targeted, more social engineering-focused, and the payloads have become "softer," and the risks are not in files and links/IP's alone anymore. Instead, recent attacks are laser-targeted and evade traditional detection by focusing on human connections.
To find out more about these "soft attacks," we talk to Otavio Freire. As the President, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of SafeGuard Cyber, Freire is responsible for the development and continuous innovation of SafeGuard Cyber's enterprise platform.
Freire has extensive experience in company strategy and engineering for cyber and risk-based scalable platforms, including social media applications, internet commerce and information technology serving the pharmaceutical, financial services, high-tech and government verticals. He has a BS in Civil Engineering, an MS in Management Information Systems and an MBA from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, where he currently serves as a visiting executive lecturer.
Security magazine: Can you explain what "soft attacks" are, and how they evade traditional detection by focusing on human connections?
Freire: At a high level, we've been seeing attacks in digital channels have grown more targeted, more social engineering-focused, and the payloads have become "softer." By "softer," we mean that the risks are not in files or links alone anymore. Instead, recent attacks are laser-targeted and evade traditional detection by focusing on human connections and language. Attackers are now moving beyond mass-phishing and malicious payload blasts. Instead, they're researching targets in social channels, like LinkedIn, before sending socially engineered messages. Issues of data loss, payroll fraud, account takeover, vendor invoice fraud, blackmail, credential phishing are other examples of types of "soft" attacks that take place in all digital channels for example: WhatsApp, DMs in social media, in Teams, Zoom etc. to name just a few.
Security magazine: Why are attackers moving beyond mass-phishing and malicious payloads blasts, and are researching their targets on social media channels before sending socially engineered message?
Freire: Attackers have realized that mass attacks have a low conversion rate, and that targeted spear-fishing however more time-intensive, has a much higher success rate. Traditional security defenses also simply do not detect and stop these attacks. From a cybercriminal's point of view, spear phishing is the perfect means to deliver a broad array of damaging exploits. For example, threat actors are increasingly targeting VIP/executives and other high-level employees - also known as MAPs (most-attacked persons) - tricking them into activating malware that grants access to their companies' environments.
These exploits might be ransomware that encrypts company data, then extorts fees from the victim to remediate the situation, or attacks that are focused on cyber-espionage, where the attacker moves laterally to avoid detection, seeking to gain long-term intelligence from those executives. For example, drug trials information, earnings, manufacturing contracts, etc.
Security magazine: What are some recent examples of these attacks?
Freire: We saw examples of these tactics in Operation Sharpshooter and more recently with the North Korean threat actor, Labyrinth Chollima which has been doing recon on targets and reaching out on LinkedIn. They then lure targets to WhatsApp, where they deliver attachments with malware. According to the FBI, over $26 billion is lost to business email compromise (BEC) alone every year, and this takes place in all channels, not just email, so perhaps the term needs to evolve.
Security magazine: How can security team leaders protect against these attacks? What are a few steps they can take?
Freire: It's not easy, and it's hard for a human to comprehend and identify spearfishing by themselves, with all the deception techniques that are deployed alongside a social engineering campaign. We've heard of even Chief Information Security Officers getting compromised with fake keynote solicitations within 12 minutes of a red teaming exercise! That said, we recommend employees and executives pay close attention to the following elements of the communication. Does the communication:
Convey a sense of urgency or secrecy?
Use an element of authority to ask you to conduct an action?
Deem itself as "private"?
Contain unusual misspellings?
Relate to financial transactions?
Have URLs containing an IP address?
Contain disparities between "href" attributes and the link text?
Contain mentions of "Link," "Click," or "Here" in a text link?
Contain Javascript?
This is just a partial list and that is why we have built machine learning and natural-language processing into our risk analytics engine, because these phishing communications change over time. We need to be able to identify them quickly and take action before any harm is done.
KEYWORDS: cyber security hacker risk management social engineering social media security
Maria Henriquez is a former Associate Editor of Security. She covered topics including cybersecurity and physical security, risk management and more.
5 minutes with Roy Horev - The evolution of DDoS attacks
5 minutes with Jann Yogman: The cure for human error? Comedy.
5 minutes with Carolyn Crandall – Detecting and preventing insider threat attacks


Download Book The Sovereignty Of Law The European Way The Hamlyn Lectures in PDF format. You can Read Online The Sovereignty Of Law The European Way The Hamlyn Lectures here in PDF, EPUB, Mobi or Docx formats.
Author was formerly Advocate-General at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg.
HauptbeschreibungThe current relationship between the Nordic countries and the European Union appears complex and confusing. Although Denmark, in 1973, and Sweden and Finland, in 1995, joined the European Union, the entry of Norway into the Union was rejected in the plebiscites of 1972 and 1994. Furthermore, Nordic EU members enjoy permanent exceptions to their integration into the EU: Denmark and Sweden, like the U.K., have declined to become part of the monetary union. Finland is essentially the only Nordic country that entered the EU without substantial exceptions. A membership bid from Iceland was unthinkable; after the fi nancial crisis - which is not the topic of this book - Iceland applied for membership in 2010 and has been in discussions with the European Commission ever since. In other words: the European Union divides Nordic societies, which has resulted in a series of national exceptions to the integration process. Taken together, these exceptions have created an integration process whose overall geometry is contradictory and paradoxical. Considering this melange, this book will discuss the actual state of Nordic integration into the EU from many different perspectives and illuminate future developments in the fi eld of integration. Where is the North relative to Europe today? How can the geometry of Northern Europe's integration, developed over a long time, be characterised? What are the challenges that threaten further development of Nordic-European relationships?
Since the 1957 Rome Treaty, the European Union has changed dramatically - in terms of its composition, scope and depth. Originally established by six Western European States, the EU today has 28 Members and covers almost the entire European continent; and while initially confined to establishing a "common market", the EU has come to influence all areas of political, economic and social life. In parallel with this enormous geographic and thematic expansion, the constitutional and legislative principles underpinning the European Union have constantly evolved. This three-volume study aims to provide an authoritative academic treatment of European Union law. Written by leading scholars and practitioners, each chapter offers a comprehensive and critical assessment of the state of the law. Doctrinal in presentation, each volume nonetheless tries to present a broader historical and comparative perspective. Volume I provides an analysis of the constitutional principles governing the European Union. It covers the history of the EU, the constitutional foundations, the institutional framework, legislative and executive governance, judicial protection, and external relations. Volume II explores the structure of the internal market, while Volume III finally analyses the internal and external substantive policies of the EU.
Who Cooked Adam Smith's Dinner?


A simple continuous fabrication process for graded-index polymer optical fibers is presented that does not rely on dopants to form the refractive-index profile. A conventional melt-spinning process is followed by rapid cooling. This will result in a density gradient and finally in a refractive-index profile.


I have requested a report from the CEO to be presented to the meeting on the progress of the motions from previous Annual Electors Meeting. Five motions were presented at the meeting.
Have you got a question to ask or a motion to put to the meeting?
How much do private parking companies pay to council.
Are the ticket writers on a commission and if so how much.
How many tickets have been written in the last 12 months?
This entry was posted on November 18, 2017 by Julie Matheson in Uncategorized and tagged Bill Marmion, City of Perth, Parking Permits, Pesticides, Subiaco Annual Electors Meeting.


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Paper Mario: The Origami King - Is the game multiplayer?
As the sixth entry in the Paper Mario franchise not including cross-play with Mario & Luigi, Paper Mario: The Origami King is another unique take on a franchise that has changed a lot over the years. There hasn't been a real distinct Paper Mario fighting style since there have been so many changes over this period between the various entries, which has left us wondering what we might expect in the new game. One of the things players might have asked is if the game has any kind of multiplayer and we are here to answer the question of whether you can team up with another player or not in Paper Mario: The Origami King.
Does the game offer multiplayer mode?
Paper Mario: The Origami King lets you take control of Mario as always as he encounters different characters and companions in the game, including his own brother Luigi. Unfortunately, no sort of multiplayer is included. You might have thought that was normal, but it's not like the Mario franchise hasn't used different types of multiplayer in its games in the past.
Super Mario Galaxy let a second player help collect stars by pointing the screen, which was very simple. Super Mario Odyssey did something similar by allowing a second game to take over Cappy when launched, which was almost a small inclusion for multiplayer.
With the various mob elements in Paper Mario: The Origami King, it would have been cool if there was at least a way to influence the game as a second player, whether as a toad or something. other than they could have found. In the long run though, it's not the type of game that really needed to be added in multiplayer, as that would have just been icing on the cake.
Among Us Airship Update Patch Notes ❯
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