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Estos son sus derechos dentro de su casa
Los 5 principales consejos para enfrentar redadas de ICE
El NYT informa que las redadas empiezan el domingo
Las redadas de ICE contra inmigrantes con visas vencidas
USCIS: ICE está "lista" para deportar a un millón de inmigrantes
New Trump administration policy requires asylum-seekers to remain in Mexico, bans US entry
By mayeauxblog December 20, 2018 February 19, 2019
The Department of Homeland Security on Thursday announced a new policy banning asylum-seekers from entering the U.S. and requiring them to stay in Mexico, a dramatic change that upends the way migrants fleeing persecution have been welcomed into the country for decades.
Under current U.S. law, people requesting asylum at the southern border – either at a port of entry or after illegally entering the country, and who pass an initial screening – are allowed to stay in the country pending an immigration judge's decision on their application.
Under the new policy unveiled Wednesday by Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, that will no longer be the case. Anybody who requests asylum will now be processed by federal immigration agents and then immediately returned to Mexico.
The U.S. and Mexican governments had been negotiating over a similar policy for weeks dubbed "Remain in Mexico," but the Trump administration was unable to reach an agreement with the administration of new Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who took office Dec. 1.
Instead, the U.S. implemented the policy unilaterally, Nielsen said during an appearance before the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday. The Trump administration informed Mexico of its decision, and was told that the Mexican government would do what it could to house, feed, and protect the migrants. The Mexican government is already struggling to accommodate thousands of members of a migrant caravan who are camped out in Tijuana awaiting their chance to apply for asylum.
"Let me be clear: We will undertake these steps consistent with all domestic and international legal obligations, including our humanitarian commitments," Nielsen told the committee. "All affected migrants will receive humanitarian visas to stay on Mexican soil, they will be given the ability to apply for work, and other protections while they await a legal U.S. determination."
DHS is relying on authorities granted under a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act that allows an attorney general to order the return of asylum-seekers arriving at a land port to the country they attempted to enter from. But the law states that the attorney general can only remove a migrant who "is not clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to be admitted."
That may run counter to a separate part of the Immigration and Nationality Act that allows asylum-seekers entry if they simply show they have a "credible fear" of returning to their home country.
"This plan cannot be done lawfully," said ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt, who led a lawsuit that forced the administration this summer to reunify families separated at the southern border with Mexico.
A senior Homeland Security official said the new policy goes into effect immediately but will be rolled out at ports of entry along the southern border. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to fully explain the policy, said the eventual goal is for asylum-seekers to stay in Mexico, and allowed to enter the U.S. only for necessary court hearings related to their application.
Nielsen says the new policy is needed to stem what has become a flood of unaccompanied minors and family units arriving at the U.S. to request asylum, knowing that they will likely be granted entry to the U.S. while their case slowly winds through the backlogged immigration court system. In the past two months, more than half of the 102,000 people caught illegally crossing the southern border were minors or family units.
DHS made the surprise announcement the same morning Nielsen was appearing before the House Judiciary Committee. Before the announcement, Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., who will become committee chairman in January when Democrats retake control of the House, warned Nielsen that her department would face intense scrutiny over its treatment of families, minors, asylum-seekers and all others along the southern border.
He likened the administration's "zero-tolerance" policy that led to thousands of family separations this summer to "mass kidnapping by the federal government." He described policies attempting to limit asylum as dangerous, haphazard and chaotic. And he said Nielsen should prepare for investigations into all those matters.
"I want to put you and the department on notice: The time for accountability has arrived," Nadler said. "The Trump administration, including DHS under your watch, has launched a relentless attack against immigrants of all stripes. The time for zero accountability is over."
Nielsen received praise from committee Republicans for the new policy, with Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, thanking her for bringing "some sanity" back to the U.S. immigration system.
But Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., told Nielsen that the new policy will surely be met with lawsuits similar to those that have struck down two other attemptsto limit asylum.
Immigrants seeking permanent green cards through marriage may have one less hurdle
EE.UU. regresará a México a solicitantes de asilo indocumentados
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At Mayeaux Sardi, our firm brings together a wealth of experience and skill that can help individuals and families face and overcome immigration issues.
We are dedicated to using what we know about immigration law to help people face the challenges that can tear their family apart or prevent them from reuniting in the United States.
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A new purse is the quickest way to update your look - but can easily be the most expensive piece of an outfit. What to do when trends (and beautiful new designer bags) emerge every three months? Go hunting for their bargain twins, of course! Check out some of the most delicious fall bags (and my bargain-hunting bounty) below.


Through the activation of public spaces around the world, artist Candy Chang creates work which examines the dynamics between society and the psyche, the threshold between isolation and community, and the role of rituals in an age of distraction. A leader in participatory public art, her work lies at the intersection of contemplative practice and the built environment.
Candy Chang's work is featured in the New Orleans exhibition Art of the City: Postmodern to Post-Katrina, presented by The Helis Foundation. On view April 6—October 6, 2019 at The Historic New Orleans Collection's new Seignouret-Brulatour Building, the exhibit celebrates the city's cultural, historical, and social currents through its diverse and thriving contemporary art scene, during a year-long celebration of New Orleans's tricentennial. More here.
Candy Chang's Before I Die installation is featured in the current exhibition No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man. Initially at the Smithsonian American Art Museum March 30, 2018—January 21, 2019, the exhibition will be at the Cincinnati Art Museum April 26—September 2, 2019, and then at the Oakland Museum of California October 12, 2019—March 22, 2020. Visitors will be able to participate on Before I Die installations at each of these exhibits. More here on the Smithsonian American Art Museum exhibit. More here on the Cincinnati Art Museum exhibit. More here on the Oakland Museum of California exhibit.
If you live in Jackson, Mississippi, please share your reflections on what will become the first permanent Before I Die wall! Candy Chang worked with the Greater Jackson Arts Council and Visit Jackson to create a Before I Die installation in the Arts Center of Mississippi on Apr 17, 2019. Former mayor Harvey Johnson, current mayor Chokwe Lumumba, and students of Obama Elementary School were among the first to share their reflections on the wall. All in the Jackson community are invited to share and once the wall is filled to the brim, it will be sealed and become a permanent portrait of the community at this moment in time.
Candy Chang's latest participatory public installation A Monument for the Anxious and Hopeful collected over 55,000 anxieties and hopes from visitors at The Rubin Museum of Art in New York, NY throughout the course of 2018. Now, she and her collaborator James A. Reeves are working with psychologists, information designers, and researchers to examine the themes, what they say about us and our culture today, and strategies to weather the struggles of modern life. More here.


Rio Salado President Chris Bustamante announced on Aug. 19 the appointment of David O'Shea to serve as the college's vice president of strategic initiatives and information services. Mr. O'Shea, who has served Rio Salado for the last two and half years, will help the college expand its reach and impact through innovative technologies and strategies, according to a press release.
Mr. O'Shea has been serving as Rio Salado's acting chief information officer for nearly a year. Preceding that, he served as Rio Salado's chief technology officer.
Mr. O'Shea has worked in the information technology field for nearly 20 years, most recently in the higher education sector. He has a master's degree in educational leadership from Northern Arizona University, a bachelor's degree from the University of Nevada, Reno in business administration with an emphasis in economics, and an associate degree in information technology from Chandler-Gilbert Community College.


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Jake Fromm to skip Senior season, enter 2020 NFL Draft
Photo: Chamberlain Smith/UGA
UGA junior quarterback Jake Fromm has decided to skip his Senior season and enter the 2020 NFL Draft.
Fromm made the announcement on Wednesday afternoon via a post to hist Twitter account.
Go Dawgs and God Bless pic.twitter.com/hz0qxJLumE
— JakefromStateFromm (@FrommJake) January 8, 2020
Fromm finishes his career in Athens with 622 completions on 983 attempts for a 63.3 completion percentage, which is the highest career completion percentage in UGA history. He threw for 8,236 yards and 78 touchdowns against only 18 interceptions.
Among his career highlights are leading the Bulldogs to a College Football Playoff at the Rose Bowl win over the Oklahoma Sooners and a National Championship Game appearance against the Alabama Crimson Tide following the 2017 season.
Fromm helped Georgia claim the 2017 SEC Championship and also led the Bulldogs to return appearances in both the 2018 and 2019 SEC Championship games.
In his final appearance as a Georgia Bulldog, Fromm guided Georgia to a 26-14 win over the seventh-ranked Baylor Bears in the 2020 Allstate Sugar Bowl.
Jake Fromm signed with Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs as part of the 2017 recruiting class, Smart's second in Athens. A native of Warner Robins, Ga., Fromm departs Georgia as a fan-favorite.
Good luck in the NFL Jake!
Hurts to hear😒wish him the best though


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West Hampstead Acupuncture
Book us for a free talk
Acupuncture Related Therapies
NO HANDS massage Transformational Touch Therapy
Fertility related conditions
IVF and Acupuncture
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The clinical definition of male infertility is the presence of abnormal semen parameters in the male partner of a couple who have been unable to conceive after 1 year of unprotected intercourse (Dohle 2010).
The World Health Organization defines male factor infertility as the presence of one or more abnormalities in the semen analysis, or the presence of inadequate sexual or ejaculatory function (Rowe 2004). In 50% of involuntarily childless couples, a male infertility associated factor is found together with abnormal semen parameters (Dohle 2010).
Male fertility requires normal sperm production and sperm transport, and adequate sexual performance, functions that require normal levels of testosterone. Male infertility can be due to a number of factors, including abnormal spermatogenesis; reproductive tract anomalies or obstruction; inadequate sexual and ejaculatory functions; and impaired sperm motility (Patki 2004; Isidori 2005; Dohle 2010). In 30-40% of men, no cause for infertility is found (Dohle 2010). However, in such men, semen analysis reveals a decreased number of spermatozoa (oligozoospermia), decreased sperm motility (asthenozoospermia) and many abnormal forms of sperm (teratozoospermia) (Dohle 2010). Factors that alter spermatogenesis include endocrine disturbances such as low testosterone levels, exposure to medicines or environmental toxins, varicocele, increased scrotal heat, systemic diseases, smoking and alcohol, and testicular torsion and trauma (Cherry 2001; Kunzle 2003; Shefi 2006; Arap 2007). Erectile and ejaculatory dysfunction may be associated with psychological factors, hypogonadism, spinal cord disease, and metabolic and vascular conditions such as diabetes (Dohle 2010). Sperm motility can be reduced in immotile cilia syndrome or in the presence of antisperm antibodies (Arap 2007).
Treatment for male infertility should be targeted to the aetiological factors whenever possible, and includes hormonal treatment, hormonal modulators, corticosteroids, antioxidants, and surgery. Assisted reproductive techniques are often the fastest and most effective method to achieve pregnancy regardless of the aetiology (Isidori 2005; Dohle
Arap MA et al. Late hormonal levels, semen parameters and presence of antisperm antibodies in patients treated for testicular torsion. J Androl 2007; 28: 528-32.
Cherry N et al. Occupational exposure to solvents and male infertility. Occup Environ Med 2001; 58: 635-40.
Dohle GR et al. Guidelines on male infertility. European Association of Urology; 2010.
Isidori A et al. Treatment of male infertility. Contraception 2005; 72: 314-8.
Kunzle R et al. Semen quality of male smokers and nonsmokers in infertile couples. Fertil Steril 2003; 79: 287-91.
Patki P et al. Effects of spinal cord injury on semen parameters. J Spinal Cord Med 2008; 31: 27-32.
Rowe PJ et al. WHO manual for the standardized investigation and diagnosis of the infertile male. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press; 2004.
Shefi S, Turek PJ. Definition and current evaluation of subfertile men. Int Braz J Urol2006; 32:385-97.
How acupuncture can help
Some clinical trials suggest that acupuncture improves sperm motility (Dieterle 2009), increases sperm count (Siterman 2009, Siterman 2001), improves sperm quality (Pei 2005; Gurfinkel 2003) and has a beneficial effect on psychogenic erectile dysfunction (Engelhardt 2003) (see Table overleaf). The research results are promising but still at a preliminary stage in terms of numbers and quality of studies.
Acupuncture may help in the treatment of male infertility (Stener-Victorin 2010), by:
lowering scrotal temperature (Siterman 2009);
enhancing local microcirculation, by increasing the diameter and blood flow velocity of peripheral arterioles (Komori 2009);
reducing inflammation, by promoting release of vascular and immunomodulatory factors (Zijlstra 2003)
by improving sperm maturation in the epididymis, increasing testosterone levels, and reducing liquid peroxidation of sperm (Crimmel 2001)
(Article from the British Acupuncture Council website)
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Arthritis (Rheumatoid)
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Terry Sheridan
Getting Paid: Trends CPAs Need To Know For 2018
Firm Issues List of the Best Tech for Accountants
Oct 23rd 2014
K2 Enterprises has announced its 2014 technology awards in 27 categories. The only clear message may have been that there was no clear message in a field marked by many good ideas, but no unanimous winners.
The company, which provides continuing education for accounting and financial professionals, as well as marketing consulting services to technology providers for accounting, has presented the awards for 13 years. K2 instructors serve as award judges.
"There were votes for many solutions", said K2 Enterprises chief executive officer Val Steed in a prepared statement. "We did have some repeat winners this year but no unanimous winners."
A goal of the awards is to draw attention to technology providers trying to make a difference, and especially those that are focused on their customers, Steed told AccountingWEB.
The fact that there were no unanimous winners this year could herald more than just change within a particular product line or company. Instead, it may very well be a sign that change is a constant in the entire field, Steed told AWEB.
"Change is what is there", he says. "We see new innovations every day."
Steed notes that companies focused on the end user continue to get market share and have longevity while those "caught in their own ivory tower world" forget what's really important.
Take, for example, cloud solutions. Everyone thought—a some still do—that cloud accounting would take over. But that's user concerns about security and other issues remain. The solutions that move forward will offer users and customers a choice between on-premise use and the cloud, and they'll stay end-user oriented, Steed says.
"The clever thing to say is that everything will change eventually, based on who has the better strategy that they can actually implement and gain market share", he says. "To win in this market, you have to stay engaged five to seven years."
And don't discount the power of the little guys. Small companies with good solutions, that see a hole in the market, and choose to compete and play hard, can win market share, Steed adds.
"The key thing is that the small or mid-size firm doesn't need a monstrous staff and resources because technology can take the place of what use to be only available resources in huge firms", he says. "Technology is the leveler for those who are willing to learn it, deploy it, manage it and invest in it."
So how to keep up? Training is essential and, yes, K2 Enterprises offers continuing education. But company instructors also see the mistake of firms that don't take the time to train their employees.
"And the last step that few follow up on is holding that technology investment accountable", Steed says. "You review it and ask if you got the value for it. Was it actually bad technology or is it not training the people?"
Avalara Has Sales Tax Tool for Accounting Firms
CPA Exchange Launched for Firm Transitions
Terry Sheridan is an award-winning journalist who has covered real estate, mortgage finance, health care, insurance, personal finance, and accounting and taxation issues for newspapers, magazines, and websites. A Chicago native and former South Florida resident, she now lives in New England.
Read more from Terry Sheridan


Matt Ryan is NFL's quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons. His huge NFL success started already in his rookie year, where he started all 16 games for the Falcons and led them to the playoffs with an 11-5 season record.
This 28 years old Spanish tennis player is nicknamed "The King of Clay". He is ranked No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals.
Phil Mickelson is American professional golfer. He's won 42 events of PGA Tour, including 5x major championships. He's spent over 700 weeks in the Top 10 Official World Golf Ranking.
Swiss tennis player who is currently ranked No.2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals. He is regarded as the greatest tennis player of all time by many.
The son of former NBA player – Joe Bryant was born for basketball. Kobe started playing when he was 3, he entered NBA directly from high school right to LA Lakers, where he's been his whole career.
This Argentina's national football team captain is only 1.7m (5'7") but he is a great player. Currently, he plays for Spanish team FC Barcelona and he is easily the most valuable player they have. His flawless technique and genius football thinking make him truly one of a kind player.
LeBron plays for NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers team. He has a cool collection of awards including 4x NBA Most Valuable Player Award, 2x NBA Rookie of the Year Award, 2x NBA Finals MVP Awards and 2x Olympic gold medals.
Portuguese professional football (soccer) player who currently plays for Real Madrid. Ronaldo's earned several prestigious prizes during his career. He was the most expensive football player in the history from 2009 to 2013.
Professional boxer, who is currently undefeated. He is five-division world champion, 10x world title winner and the lineal championship in four different weight classes. Long story short – he's currently the best boxer around.


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Andrew Cuomo's changing position on marijuana: A timeline
ALBANY - Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration is almost finished with a study on recreational marijuana that many expect could clear the way for the Democrat to back legalizing the drug.
Cuomo, however, has long been more cautious on marijuana than many within his party, reiterating his opposition to recreational marijuana as recently as last year, when he called it a gateway drug.
More:New York keeps inching closer to marijuana legalization
Here's a look at Cuomo's history with marijuana policy and how his positions have changed over the years.
August 2002: Admits to marijuana use
During his first, ill-fated run for governor, Cuomo says he "tried marijuana in my youth." He later reiterated this when he was asked about any past drug use during his second run for governor in 2010.
October 2010: Opposed to medical marijuana
A week before his election as governor, Cuomo comes out against medical marijuana. "The dangers of medical marijuana outweigh the benefits," he said.
July 2011: 'Reviewing' medical marijuana
Cuomo tells reporters he's studying the issue of medical marijuana. "We're talking to both sides of the issue, if you will, and we're reviewing it, but we don't have a final position," he said.
April 2012: Re-iterates opposition
"I understand the benefits, but there are also risks and I think the risks outweigh the benefits at this point," Cuomo said.
June 2012: Push for lesser marijuana penalties
Cuomo proposes reducing the penalty for public possession of less than 25 grams of marijuana.
"If you possess marijuana privately, it's a violation," he said. "If you show it in public, it's a crime. It's incongruous." Senate Republicans ultimately block the proposal.
April 2013: Still opposed to medical marijuana
"We're looking at it, but at this point I don't support medical marijuana," he said.
December 2013: No to recreational marijuana
A Democratic senator proposes a bill to legalize recreational marijuana, but a Cuomo spokesman calls it a "non-starter."`
January 2014: Support for medical marijuana
Cuomo reverses his medical marijuana position, pledging to launch a program that would make the drug available on a very limited basis at up to 20 hospitals. "I feel comfortable with this approach," he said.
June 2014: Broader medical marijuana program approved
Lawmakers approve a bill creating a broader medical-marijuana program in New York. On Cuomo's insistence, it included a number of strict restrictions, including a ban on smokeable forms of the drug and limits on the number of dispensaries. He signs the bill.
February 2017: Calls marijuana a 'gateway drug'
Cuomo reiterates opposition to legalizing recreational marijuana.
"As of this date, I am unconvinced on recreational marijuana," he said. "If you choose to use marijuana recreationally, you know the law." Calls marijuana a "gateway drug."
January 2018: Launches legal marijuana study
Cuomo launches a study of whether it's plausible to legalize marijuana for recreational use in New York, noting neighboring states Massachusetts and Vermont have done so.
"It is a hotly debated topic, pardon the pun, and it would be nice to have some facts in the middle of the debate," he said.
April 3, 2018: Study promised 'by the fall'
Department of Health spokeswoman says the agency will "collect the relevant information by the fall, at which point it will be reviewed and a report will be prepared."
April 11, 2018: Nixon calls for legal marijuana
Cynthia Nixon, Cuomo's Democratic opponent, calls for legalizing recreational marijuana.
May 14, 2018: New timeline for marijuana study
Cuomo says the marijuana study will be completed "within days" — not the fall, as the Health Department had previously said.
May 23, 2018: NY Democratic Party backs legal marijuana
Delegates at the state Democratic Party's designating convention back the legalization of marijuana for recreational use. The resolution comes the same day Cuomo, who leads the state party, was nominated by party delegates for a third term.
July 13, 2018: Health Department backs recreational marijuana
The state Department of Health issued its long-awaited report concluding the benefits outweigh the potential negative impacts of legalizing marijuana for recreational use. The report is delivered to Cuomo, who says he will soon review it.
August 2, 2018: Cuomo launches marijuana task force
Cuomo creates a workgroup tasked with crafting legislation to legalize and regulated recreational marijuana in New York.
December 17, 2018: Cuomo calls for legalization
The Democratic governor offers his most-forceful support for marijuana to date. "Let's legalize the adult use of recreational marijuana once and for all," he said.
JCampbell1@Gannett.com
Jon Campbell is a correspondent for USA TODAY Network's Albany Bureau.


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The Philippine government is recruiting Muslims into the military in an attempt to counter terrorism through a mixture of religious and security approaches.
The Philippines faces increasing security pressure since the rise of the Maute, a terrorist group affiliated with IS (Islamic State), in Marawi city. The group in May last year laid siege to Marawi, the capital of the Muslim majority Lanao del Sur province on Mindanao Island in the southern Philippines. A five-month armed conflict ensued, displacing thousands. More than 520 members of the terrorist group and 122 Philippine soldiers were killed.
The Philippine government has declared that the Maute leadership has disintegrated. But it is still possible that their dormant cells will rally together.
I study terrorism in Southeast Asia and have been looking into Philippine government policy in countering terrorism. Recruitment of Muslims into the military might be the strategy most likely to make Muslim communities accept a military presence where most of the population sympathises with the militants.
Aside from the threat of IS-affiliated terrorist groups, the Philippines is also still dealing with the local pirate group Abu Sayyaf. The group hijacks and abducts the crews of foreign ships for exorbitant ransoms, which could be used to fund their other terrorist activities.
So far, the Catholic majority government has used a security approach, deploying the Philippine military to fight the terrorist groups. But the military ranks poorly compared to its ASEAN counterparts, according to data provided by the website Global Firepower, which assesses military power. Even when compared with 133 other countries, the Philippines still ranks at 52.
The effort to eradicate terrorism is a global agenda. Governments generally use a military approach. In reality, this is not enough. Governments must employ alternative approaches, such as using religion and culture, to confront violent extremism.
Indonesia has implemented deradicalisation programs to tame terrorists. This method involves the communities and families of former terrorist convicts who have been reformed.
To reach out to millennials, the Indonesian government has also recruited young internet users with huge social media followings to spread the message of peace.
The Philippines, meanwhile, aims to form a special Muslim unit within the military to be deployed to Muslim majority areas.
Starting last year, the Philippine military has adopted a maximum 5% quota for Muslim recruits. The military recruitment system is open to all citizens. However, Muslims have been less interested in joining the military, thinking that they have less chance to enter the force.
By setting a quota, the military hopes to ensure more Muslims are recruited. The military also set a 10% quota for female soldiers, and another 5% for indigenous people.
Establishing a special Muslim unit could have two positive impacts.
First, it could create more room for dialogue when compared with conventional military manoeuvres. With Muslim members, this special unit can be more sensitive to religious and cultural needs.
Second, it could garner support from local communities. Having a Muslim unit operate in a Muslim majority area will hopefully reduce suspicion in local communities towards the Philippines' military deployments.
At the same time, this can be a counter narrative to the local view that military deployment by the government is a form of invasion.
On the other hand, the formation of a special Muslim unit within the Philippine military could also have negative consequences.
First, it could create factions or disparities within the military between the Muslim unit and other units.
There have been plenty of cases in various countries such as Turkey and Myanmar that show how the military can be fragmented when different factions are hostile to each other.
If a spirit of nationalism isn't properly planted, the special Muslim unit could actually pose a new problem for the Philippines. Instead of making the process for peace easier, it could actually act as new fuel for a conflict that has long been there.
Second, such an approach might actually create a stigma that Muslim terrorists must be fought against by equally hardline Muslims soldiers.
These days, Islam is often regarded as a religion or faith that is steeped in a violence. If this newly established special Muslim unit is not managed properly, the stigma could actually worsen.
Aside from the existing debate, a Philippine government strategy based on religion and culture to counter extremists by forming a special Muslim military unit must be appreciated. With limited military strength, the government is able to devise an alternative strategy to ruin the foundation of extremism. At the same time, the government is reducing the potential conflict with local communities and building the Philippines' military image within Southeast Asia.
The threat of extremism in the Philippines to other Southeast Asian countries makes the problem a regional issue.
Every country in the region has different strategic interests. For example, Indonesia's north directly shares a border with the Philippines.
Indonesia can learn plenty of lessons from how the Philippines combats extremism, from operational strategies and fieldwork technicalities, to how to comprehensively handle perpetrators and the psychological impact of terrorism on society. These lessons are especially relevant since it was recorded that quite a few Indonesian citizens have obtained terrorist training in militant organisations from the Philippines.
Despite pros and cons, we still hope that this can contribute to a solution to the issues of extremism, radicalism and terrorism that have haunted not just the lives of Philippine society but also of the larger Southeast Asian community.


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Memorial for 2 children draws mourners; officers continue search for mom
CTV Winnipeg Published Wednesday, July 24, 2013 10:10AM CST Last Updated Thursday, July 25, 2013 7:44PM CST
A search for a missing woman is continuing Thursday. Police say Lisa Gibson, 32, is a "person of interest" after the deaths of her two children on Wednesday.
An infant and toddler were rushed to hospital in critical condition but couldn't be revived.
Police say Gibson was the last person to see the kids.
"At this point, we are concerned for her well-being. We want to make sure that she's fine and obviously, once located safely, we'll be looking to speak with her regarding the incident," said Const. Eric Hofley.
Officers were called around 8 a.m. Wednesday morning to the first 100 block of Coleridge Park Drive in Westwood.
Neighbours said the children were found in a bathtub by their grandma.
Someone at the home called 911.
Police have not confirmed how the children died.
"I just heard there was a tragedy in the neighbourhood and some children were hurt," said one neighbour.
"Our daughter met Lisa and her baby because they had babies in common. Just a beautiful family as far as we knew," said Earl Gould, another neighbour.
Gibson, who worked at a hospital pharmacy and her husband, an electrician, were often seen outside with their two-year-old daughter and infant son, said residents.
Neighbours said Gibson had been taking medication for postpartum depression and the children's grandparents had been visiting the home daily to help.
Officers remained on scene hours after being called to the house, with several units searching the area.
Wednesday evening, search and rescue crews combed the Assiniboine River near the home and looked into nearby vehicles until skies grew dark. The Air1 helicopter continued to circle above after nightfall.
People who didn't know the family arrived at the scene to lay flowers and teddy bears and light candles at a growing memorial.
Jolaine Vandal came from Charleswood to pay her respects. Fighting back tears, she told CTV News, "Being a mother of three myself, this is really hard."
Thursday afternoon, the police dive team and river patrol boat went up the Assiniboine River as they continued their search.
Anyone with information on Lisa Gibson's location is asked to call investigators at 204-986-6508 or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-8477.
A vigil for the Gibson family was also scheduled to be held at 7 p.m. on July 25 at Winnipeg Mennonite Elementary, 250 Bedson Street.
- with a report from Alesia Fieldberg and files from the Canadian Press
Mothers gather to raise awareness of postpartum depression Thursday evening at Winnipeg Mennonite Elementary School.
Officers released an image of Lisa Gibson, 32, on July 24, 2013.
Neighbourhood children Ava and Logan lay flowers and teddy bears on Coleridge Park Drive for two-year-old Anna and three-month-old Nicholas who died in Winnipeg on July 24, 2013.
A memorial for the two young children who died is shown outside a home on Coleridge Park Drive in Winnipeg, Man.
Winnipeg police on scene in the first 100 block of Coleridge Park Drive on July 24, 2013. Two children were rushed to hospital but died.
Deep freeze hits Manitoba


One of the best ideas while looking for a glass centre table for living room is to go with a model that has a very unusual base design. Instead of sticking to standard four legs that have long ago become boring, go with something abstract and futuristic, giving your modern living room an unforgettable charm of its own.
One of the best combinations for a glass centre table for a living room is the combination of glass surface and glossy base. With other glossy furniture in the room, the arrangement will look elegant and cheerful at the same time.
In a really spacious living room , one the best ideas to create a rich and unique environment is to go with stone range furniture. Light glass surface on a bulky, eye catching stone or marble base will make the room truly unforgettable.
For a modern and minimalistic room nothing will fit in better than a glass centre table with rounded surface and base corners. Combined with other svelte looking furniture, the arrangement will be eye catching enough to help you downsize on accessories.
A polar opposite alternative would be to furnish the room with edgy units. Similar to the svelte furniture, a desecration theme like that will draw attention and will not require any additional accessorising.
If you are fond of genuine wood, rustic is another possible option you might want to explore. Sweet, homey looking rustic tables will give any living room a warmer and cosier look. And, in a large home with protruding architectural elements (beams, etc.), rustic furniture is truly one of the best ideas you can consider.
To make the living room even cosier, consider going with a French table. Vintage design and classic white colour look time relevant in traditional rooms, bringing a touch of retro into the environment and making it one of a kind.


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6 Reasons Why You Should Play Fairy Tail
With over 300 episodes and 2 movies, Fairy Tail has become one of the most popular Shonen series to date. With this in mind fans have been craving a video game for years. Finally, the time has come to jump into the shoes of some of the most powerful spell casters the Fairy Tail Guild has to offer.
So why should you play the game? Is it just for the fans or will it appeal to everyone? Here are 6 reasons why you should be playing Fairy Tail when it comes out on July 31st.
Experience the epic Fairy Tail Story
It has been confirmed that the story is not your run of the mill spin-off. This game takes place in the heart of the Fairy Tail storyline and covers the Tenrou Island arc all the way to the Tartaros arc. The majority of the game you will be guiding your party of sorcerers through the Grand Magic Games, testing your skills, completing quests, and leveling up!
The story will clock in around 30 hours, meaning that you will have a decent amount to play and explore. New to Fairy Tail? Not a problem as there has been story beats added to the game to introduce you to Natsu Dragneel and the rest of the Guild.
Great List of Playable Characters
There is a total of 16 playable characters for you to get your mitts on in Fairy Tail. All with their own unique moves and play style. So if you're an RPG player who loves to mix up their team dynamin on a regular basis then you have plenty to choose from.
Playable characters:
Gray Fullbuster
Gajeel Redfox
Jellal Fernandes
Kagura Mikazuchi
Sherria Blendy
Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki
Sting Eucliffe
Rogue Cheney
Laxus Dreyar
Gildarts Clive
What's also pretty great is the more you use these characters in your party the more they will bond. This will intern unlock new story elements giving you even greater insight into the world of Fairy Tail.
The list of characters doesn't stop with just the playable ones however, as there is a whole host of support characters which you can summon for some epic attacks!
A whole slew of customisable options
If you're into customising, then Fairy Tail has you covered! Want to customise your character's outfit? No problem! Do you want to change up their moves to fit your play style? Then go ahead! The list of options is huge! The customisation doesn't stop at your party, as you're able to customise the guild hall as well!
Speaking of the Guild Hall, it is up to you to build up its reputation! The Fairy Tail game picks up at the point where the anime has the guild try to build up its back up! (if you know about the Tenrou Island and the Dark Guild then you'll know why). It's up to you to build up and evolve your Guild Hall from a tiny shack to the architectural magnificence it had back in the old days of Fairy Tail.
What's more, as you level up your guild hall more options will be available to you to level up your party, stock up on supplies, and buy some epic gear.
Classic Turn-based JRPG
Turn-based RPGs are becoming few and far between these days. Luckily Fairy Tail is kicking it old school and bringing back a turn-based RPG system that will make any gamer out there jump for joy.
Some say that a Fairy Tail game would be better as a real-time action RPG. However, the turn-based system works so well here! The UI is very intuitive and the whole battle gameplay has been compared to some great RPG systems like Persona 5.
Another great thing here is that the game encourages you to think tactically, as each move has a certain area of effect, meaning you are able to target more than one opponent at a time. There is also gauge that fills during combat that lets you unleash an epic Unison Raid combo attacks!
Explore the Kingdom of Fiore
Fairy Tail gives the player the opportunity to explore their surroundings using semi-open worlds. Meaning you will be able to relish the hustle and bustle of Kingdom of Fiore by dive deep into the merchant city of Magnolia or even exploring the majesty of the Flower Blooming capital of Crocus. Each map will give you the opportunity to complete side quests that will take you around these cities and more.
Fairy Tail will launch on PS4, Xbox One, and Switch on July 31st!
Tweets by MangaUK
Anime to watch this Halloween: Junji Ito Collection
Written by Tundun Folami When it comes to horror anime and manga there is probably no name as prolific as Junji Ito. With a career spanning over 30 years, and with classics such as Tomie and Uzumaki under his belt, my recommendation for the horror anime you should...


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The Handmaiden (2016)
bhavnatalkiesFILMS, MYSTERY, THRILLERCho Jin-woong, Ha jung-woo, Kim Min-hee, Kim Tae-ri, Park Chan-wook2 Comments
This well acclaimed Korean film boasts of a story that is twisted in more ways than one.
It's a mind boggling thriller, an unconventional romance drama that defys norms and despite its shocking sexual content, is regarded as a brilliant piece of cinema.
Director – Park Chan-wook
Cast – Kim Min-hee, Kim Tae-ri, Ha jung-woo, Cho Jin-woong
Based on – Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
The film opens to show a poor girl Sook-Hee joining as a handmaiden to a Japanese Heiress Hideko. Hideko lives with her uncle Kouzuki who plans to wed her for her fortune, while a rich Count Fujiwara also has his heart set out for the heiress.
There is a fortune to be acquired. There's greed and depravity at play. There are layers and facades to characters. But there's love that blossoms amidst all this.
Watch this unpredictable, layered, twisted, kinky story to know whether love conquers… and whose !
The film has aced in all departments that have come together to give us an impactful film that leaves a lingering effect on the mind.
The narrative's brilliance is something that has to be experienced to be understood.
Everything opens up in layers. When the next layer opens, you find yourself calibrating and looking at the same situation from a different angle and the same character in a different perspective. And when you think you have been given the revelation, you realise that there's more to come.
While tightly wound up in this suspenseful and extremely engaging narration, you revel in the luxurious detailed setting and sets, the costumes, the performances and the awesome background score.
I must mention that the film contains some extreme sexual content but surprisingly and appreciatively, the film does not use it for the erotic quotient. It is quite an intrinsic part of characterisation and how the story pans out. While it was shocking, the overall excellence and the quality of the film surpasses that discomfiture.
This well-applauded thriller, coming from an acclaimed director, with its exceptional storytelling, sure leaves a long lasting impression.
Richard Jewell (2019)
2 thoughts on "The Handmaiden (2016)"
Anurag Gupta says:
Watching international cinema is the logical next step to developing a further appreciation of cinema & its techniques. It'll really help your readers to broaden their horizons.
bhavnatalkies says:
I try to jump across genres and regions as much as my palate allows.


Cape Town - The Hurricanes were dealt a setback ahead of their Super Rugby campaign after second-rower Sam Lousi was ruled out with a pectoral injury.
Although there is still uncertainty how long he will be sidelined, Hurricanes assistant coach Jason Holland revealed that the injury was "definitely not short-term".
"We'll work through that in the next couple of days and see where that's going to go, but he's definitely not a short-term injury," he told the Stuff website.
The injury means Lousi will miss his team's season opener against his former side, the Waratahs, in Sydney on Saturday.
Holland said there were some players who were carrying pre-season niggles, but none were as serious as Lousi's injury.
All of the Hurricanes' All Blacks, bar flyhalf Beauden Barrett, will be available for selection, but few are expected to be in the run-on side.
"We've just got to be smart around how we manage everyone," added Holland.
Although the All Blacks will be involved, Lousi's absence will deplete the Hurricanes tight five, which is always considered a weakness.
James Blackwell is expected to start in the second-row and they have a couple of options to replace Lousi as the other lock.
The inexperienced trio of Geoff Cridge, Isaia Walker-Leawere and Liam Mitchell are in the running to come in for Lousi and Mitchell will make his Super Rugby debut if selected.
The other alternative is to have All Blacks utility forward Vaea Fifita cover lock again, although his desire is for a prolonged run on the blindside flank.


The conceit in this episode is that we're trying to make a trailer. And we kind of were, but it's possible that we're not that good at making trailers.
We're pretty good at talking though, so there's that.
This entry was posted in Episodes and tagged Comic Relief, James Gillie, Lenny Henry, mental health, Mothering Sunday, Nicolas Papaconstantinou, parenting, podcast, Will Ferrell on March 17, 2015 by Nicolas Papaconstantinou.


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FBI: Navy Yard Shooter 'Delusional,' said 'Low Frequency Attacks' Drove Him to Kill
Posted 11:29 AM, September 26, 2013, by Ian McDonald
Aaron Alexis moves through the hallways of Building #197 carrying the Remington 870 shotgun on September 16. (FBI)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (CNN)-
Aaron Alexis was under "the delusional belief that he was being controlled or influenced by extremely low frequency electromagnetic waves" before he embarked on a bloody shooting rampage at the Washington Navy Yard, an FBI official said Wednesday.
The 34-year-old contractor, who until a few years ago had served in the Navy, spelled out this belief — with the words, "My ELF weapon" — in the sawed-off Remington 870 shotgun he brought into the military facility's Building #197 on the morning of September 16.
"ELF" refers to low-frequency electromagnetic waves, a technology used for submarine communications that conspiracy theorists believe the government employs to monitor and manipulate unsuspecting citizens, the FBI said.
"Ultra low frequency attack is what I've been subject to for the last 3 months," read a message obtained by federal authorities from Alexis's thumb drives, phones and computers. "And to be perfectly honest, that is what has driven me to this."
"This" is the incident that left the Navy, Washington and the nation in shock. Alexis was quickly tabbed as the shooter. Still, big questions loomed as to why he did it, as well as whether he'd gotten help or told anyone about his plans.
Valerie Parlave, assistant director in charge of the FBI's Washington field office, stated unequivocally Wednesday "the investigation has determined that Alexis acted alone." Asked whether he talked to or e-mailed anyone ahead of the attack, Parlave responded simply: "No."
The public also got the first chance Wednesday to see Alexis in action that day, through surveillance video and photos.
They start with Alexis driving his rented blue Toyota Prius, with New York plates, around 7:53 a.m. into a parking garage, and then 15 minutes later carrying a backpack into Building #197. A still photo, taken afterward, shows that backpack hung on the inside wall of a fourth-floor bathroom stall — where he'd put his shotgun together, authorities say.
The most chilling footage shows Alexis, dressed in a short-sleeve polo shirt and pants, prowling the building's halls and stairwells. Most of the time, his gun is cocked — ready to fire.
Alexis went on to kill 12 people that day and wound four others.
The same shotgun on which he had written "My ELF" contained other etchings as well. The words: "End to the torment!" "Not what y'all say!" And "Better off this way!"
At some point during his rampage, Alexis picked up a Beretta handgun. He exchanged gunfire with law enforcement officers a few times during the more than hourlong ordeal, which ended at 9:25 a.m. with Alexis shot dead on the third floor.
Alexis had arrived in the capital area on August 25 for a contracting project, a few weeks after he told police in Newport, Rhode Island, that he'd heard "voices" emanating from the walls of hotels he'd been staying at.
Once in Washington, he stayed at two suburban hotels before settling into a Residence Inn in the city on September 7.
Two days later, Alexis began his contracting job based at the Navy Yard. On the first Saturday after that, he was at a Northern Virginia shooting range and gun store — where he purchased the Remington 870.
FBI: Shooter did not target specific victims
A manager raised a performance-related issue with Alexis the previous Friday, but Parlave said that there is no indication this incident spurred any notable reaction. In fact, when he began shooting, it appears he wasn't picky about his victims.
"We have not determined there to be any previous relationship between Alexis and any of the victims," the FBI official said.
With his contractor status — not to mention he was a former Navy reservist — few questioned that Alexis legitimately gained access to the Navy Yard the morning of the fateful shooting.
Still, some have asked whether he should have had such access, given his mental health and criminal history.
The latter includes a 2004 arrest in Seattle, when he was accused of shooting the tires of a man's truck in an anger-fueled "blackout," according to a police report. Alexis' father told police his son had anger management problems associated with post-traumatic stress disorder, which he suffered after working "as an active participant in rescue attempts" during the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York.
Another arrest came in August 2008 in DeKalb County, Georgia, on a disorderly conduct charge. Two years later, Alexis was arrested in Fort Worth, Texas — but never charged — over an allegation that he fired a gun through the ceiling of his apartment.
That was the year, 2010, that the Navy moved to discharge Alexis due to what military officials described as a "pattern of misconduct" including insubordination, disorderly conduct, unauthorized absences from work and at least one instance of drunkenness. But due to a lack of evidence, he was instead given an honorable discharge.
Then there was his mental state, including last month's incident in Newport, Rhode Island. Alexis also sought help at two Veterans Affairs hospitals in and around Washington for sleep-related issues, according to law enforcement sources.
HP drops subcontractor Alexis worked for
Despite all this, Alexis still managed to find work at The Experts for about six months over the past year. That company said the last of two background checks it conducted in June on Alexis "revealed no issues other than one minor traffic violation."
Like the military, The Experts has come under criticism for not recognizing Alexis as a potential problem or threat.
A Hewlett-Packard spokesman told CNN on Wednesday the technology company — citing its policy of adhering "to the highest standards of business practices and ethics" — had dropped The Experts as a subcontractor.
"Based on what we now know about The Experts' conduct, including its failure to respond appropriately to Aaron Alexis' mental health issues and certain incidents recently reported in the press, HP has terminated its relationship with The Experts," the spokesman said.
The Experts responded, in a statement, saying it was "disappointed' by HP's decision and insisting it has met "all of our contractual obligations."
"The Experts had no greater insight into Alexis' mental health than HP, particularly given that an HP site manager closely supervised him, including during the events in Rhode Island," the company said.
FBI takes heat over video release
The FBI was criticized Wednesday night, both by Defense Department officials and victims' families following the release of the video.
"People in DoD are furious that FBI and other law enforcement officials unnecessarily put out this video footage today. It only adds to the pain of the families and brought life back to a killer," a senior Pentagon official told CNN. "Outside of law enforcement channels, the video was not viewed."
Another Defense Department official described the release as "gratuitous," indicating there was nothing to be gained from the release.
Law enforcement officials said they reached all but one of the victims' families to inform them beforehand.
And officials at the FBI argued that the video clarified various conflicting reports about the timeline of events, and would help to dispel various pieces of misinformation, including one incorrect story that the shooter was looking for specific victims.
Ronald Hosko, assistant director of the FBI's Criminal Division, said what was released was a far less painful version of the graphic video collected by authorities.
Navy leadership said that while officials knew the footage would be released, they were not told of the content. It is not known if anyone in Pentagon leadership had expressed their views with the FBI or Justice Department.
Sources also told CNN that the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, an arm of the Navy, was part of the decision regarding the distribution of the video, and saw the footage before it was released.
One victims' family reacted with equal dismay.
"I'm in total shock after reviewing the video. We have not even had time to begin to grieve," Theodore Hisey told CNN Wednesday evening, saying his family did not know the FBI was about to release the video.
His sister-in-law, Mary Francis Knight, was one of the 12 killed by Alexis.
™ & © 2013 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.
Filed in: National and World News, News
John Allman
ELF could, I suppose, explain mood-altering effects, by means of the entrainment of EEG. However, this alleged target of electronic harassment, like many, reports voice-to-skull (V2K) transmissions. Audible content isn't infrasound, or ultrasound. It's *audible*, and Aaron Alexis reported *hearing* it.
Of course, there's no reason why a single electromagnetic carrier (for example in the microwave part of the spectrum) shouldn't be modulated with both mood-altering ELF and audible content.
V2K one can hear, if it's loud enough not to be merely subliminal (which is also pretty unethical). But how would one *know* (rather than merely suspect), the way that people know that they are receiving audible V2K effects, that one was the victim of mood-altering ELF effects?
How could the FBI possibly know whether Alexis was actually a target, or somebody with auditory hallucinations who misinterpreted them? Sharp and Grove used the Frey effect to transmit human speech almost forty years ago at Walter Reed, as Lin reported in American Psychologist in 1975. Yet in 2009 John Alexander told me at the Fifth European Symposium on Non-Lethal Weapons that not even he knew anything about any contemporary anti-personnel applications of that capability.
One of the valuable jobs that FFCHS' and other groups do is facilitating peer-to-peer support of alleged targets. In all the decades that people like Alexis have been complaining to deaf ears about their suffering, this is the first time that I've ever heard of a targeted person going berserk like this, and going on a heart-breaking mass murder rampage. If Alexis had known about the supportive community out there, he might never have done something as (let's face it) downright wicked as he did. It is a tragedy that there is such scant media coverage of this important issue.
Christians Against Mental Slavery
BanMindWeapons.org
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Client activity notification module for WHMCS will power up your system with 8 new notification email templates to send admin and client any activity happens on the client area. So if the any client register on SSDINDIA an email will be sent to the authorized admin. As you know if any client changes his details a notification email will only be sent to admin but with the client activity notification module if the client change his details the admin and client will receive a notification email for change client details. From module settings you can authorized admin who will receive the activity notification emails and check/uncheck any notification email you and client want to receive the client also have the ability to check/uncheck his own notification emails from the client area and see all the activity log for his account.
If you do not want to receive mails of Activity Notifications then you can disable it as following steps.
Login to Client area OR member area here.
Uncheck the checkboxes on those options which you do not want to receive mails.
At last click on Save Changes buttons.


I'm back from Sydney, where part of my series 'Mediterranean. The Continuity of Man' was exhibited at the annual Head On Photo Festival. My photograph 'Saint-Tropez, France', just outside the Lower Town Hall in central Sydney.


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CME is the registered trademark of Central Music Company, a musical high-tech company founded in Beijing, China in 1993. Its main focus is consumer and professional digital music production equipment.

History
Central Music Company imports and distributes into the Chinese music production market many of the world's most well known music production brands including Apogee, E-Mu, Event, Kurzweil, Moog, MOTU, Novation, PreSonus, RME, and Røde (among others). CME was also the distributor for Yamaha music production products in China, until April 1, 2005 when Yamaha founded its own Chinese subsidiary. After this, CME began researching both the Chinese and overseas markets and started developing its own products. These products are now sold worldwide under the CME brand name.

Products
CME is known primarily for its MIDI keyboard controllers. Their UF series MIDI keyboards were particularly ubiquitous in professional music creation circles in the early-to-mid 2000s, seen in demo videos of virtual instruments such as Propellerheads Reason and Arturia. The hammer-action of the keys on the 88-key UF8 keyboard were particularly popular. CME has branched out from only making MIDI keyboard controllers and also has made:

 ASX - an expansion card for the UF series and VX series keyboard controllers that made them stand-alone synthesizers
 Bitstream 3X - a Wave Idea MIDI desktop control surface
 Matrix K - a USB audio interface with optional FireWire expansion
 Matrix X - an analog 5 channel mixer
 Matrix Z - a 4-channel analog headphone amplifier
 U-Key - a portable synthesizer
 UF series UF5, UF6, UF7, UF8 - MIDI keyboard controllers
 VX series VX5, VX6, VX7, VX8 - MIDI keyboard controllers with motorized faders, touch-sensitive pads, and HUI control surface capabilities
 WIDI-XU - a wireless MIDI transmitter the size of a small USB flash drive.
 WIDI-X8 - a wireless MIDI system
 ZSC series ZSC64, ZSC 76, ZSC88 - MIDI keyboard controllers with weighted keys on all smaller-size models

References

Music equipment manufacturers
Manufacturing companies based in Beijing

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


If using keyboard shortcuts is not your forté but you spend a lot of time working in workhorse applications like Photoshop, GarageBand, Pages or Word, Numbers, Adobe InDesign, iMovie, or PowerPoint, or you simply want a faster way to execute menu items on your computer, you might want to check an app called Actions for iPad ($3.99).
Actions enables you to set up commands to control your Mac or Windows PC from your iPad. It works in similar fashion to Keyboard Maestro Automate Everything On Your Mac with Keyboard Maestro [Mac] Automate Everything On Your Mac with Keyboard Maestro [Mac] I've written several articles about Mac automation, including a MUO Automation Guide on how to get started with Apple's Automator and the built-in OS X features for creating smart folders, playlists, albums, and mailboxes. But... Read More , an automator application I recently reviewed. Actions is like having a personalised menu on your iPad which can be used to access a variety of individual commands, like opening and closing windows, zooming in and out on a webpage, controlling media playback, navigating via web browsers, or when creating new documents — basically any menu bar item for an application can be executed in Actions.
Though Actions for iPad does require some setup to get started, its user interface is very well designed, especially for an automation application. Actions is sort of like Automator 9 Automator Apps You Can Create in Under 5 Minutes 9 Automator Apps You Can Create in Under 5 Minutes Using Automator on your Mac lets you make quick work of boring tasks. Here are a few simple workflows you can create in minutes. Read More , but it's ten times more attractive. The main palette of Actions consists of multicolor buttons with professionally designed icons that send assigned commands to your computer.
Tapping on an action is like clicking on a menu bar item or issuing a keyboard shortcut command. You can divide the Actions palette into different presets, one for each of your most used applications, including the Finder. When you switch to a preset application in Actions, that application will automatically come to the forefront on your Mac or PC. Likewise, when you switch to a different preset application on your computer, it will automatically switch to the corresponding preset on Actions, so you can start using the preset commands.
Actions also includes universal finger gestures on the iPad for copying and pasting text and images, and for undoing and redoing actions on your computer.
I must admit I didn't find Actions easy to set up at first. To get started, you will need to download and install the Mac or PC client for Actions. Next open Actions on your iPad and the client on your computer, and pair them over your network. This part of the setup is easy enough and the app walks you through the process.
I believe the Actions app for iPad comes installed with a preset application for controlling iTunes, but you still will need to take some time to set up personalized presets for your own computer. If you overlook the tutorial when first opening Actions, you can re-open it by tapping on the tiny "i" icon on the top-left of Actions, accessed by swiping down on the palette with three fingers.
The resulting page will explain the four main buttons to create or load presets, and edit actions in the app.
Fortunately, Actions comes installed with presets for a wide variety of applications including Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom, Chrome and Safari, iMovie, Word, Windows Vista and XP, and Garageband. Tap the pencil icon in the top-right to create a new preset or load the preset application.
When the Create new preset button is tapped Actions will load all of the supporting applications on your computer. You can then scroll and select the one you want to load – iPhoto An Easy Guide To Understanding The Image Editing Process In iPhoto '11 [Mac] An Easy Guide To Understanding The Image Editing Process In iPhoto '11 [Mac] Read More for instance.
Type a label for the set and then tap on the tick confirmation icon on the top-right side. After the new set or application is created, tap on the confirmation button again, and then tap the Load button, which presents all the applications that include default preset commands in Actions.
Next, tap the confirmation button, and Actions will load your selection of actions for iPhoto. You can re-arrange the actions on the palette, and when you're done, tap the confirmation button to save those actions. Notice that you can always edit or load more actions for the application set by tapping on the edit icon.
You can also tap the edit button, and then tap on an individual action to edit and change the color of a button, or add or change its icon or name.
Though Actions has over 900 pre-installed actions and commands, there will be applications in which you will have to create actions from scratch. So for instance, since Actions doesn't have preset actions for the text editor, MarsEdit, they will need to be manually created. To do this, tap on the Edit button, followed by the Create button.
Actions are created based on keyboard shortcuts. To create a Paste Link action, for example, I tap on the key command buttons in Actions that match the keyboard shortcut for that menu item in MarsEdit. You can apply a color and icon to represent that action and after tapping the confirmation button, it's good to go.
With Actions open and setting next to my keyboard, I can tap on actions as I write articles in MarsEdit.
The above instructions I've given for Actions cover just its basic features. You will have to spend some time to learn all that the app has to offer. The developers probably should create a set of video tutorials for those who are new to automation applications like this.
Is Actions for iPad a highly productive app? Well, it depends on your workflow and whether or not you think it would be faster to issue commands from your iPad's screen rather than using lots of keyboard shortcuts. I think you do get a lot of functionality for the small price of the app, but as ever let us know what you think of Actions in the comments, below.
I love this concept - ipad controlling my pc applications. Yes there will be a learning curve but I think it will be so worth it. I am passing this info onto many of my friends.


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13/01/2022 - Internal Audit Charter ref: 1148 Recommendations Approved
Find out more about this decision (item 5)
The Managing Director attended the Governance and Audit Committee informal consultative meeting on 13 January and had regard to both the report presented to that meeting and the views expressed by the members of the Committee before making the decision.
Decision Maker: Managing Director
Decision published: 18/01/2022
That the Internal Audit Charter be approved
Lead officer: Ben Still
07/01/2022 - Harrogate Road – New Line ref: 1147 Recommendations Approved
Change Request - Approval for the scheme to progress through Activity 6 (Delivery) and work commence on Activity 7 (Close and Review)
Increase of spend from £12.327m to £13.754m (£1.427m) due to unknown utilities, COVID-19 and issues with suppliers.
(i) The change request to the Harrogate Road – New Line is approved to increase the total value of Combined Authority funding from the current approval of £7,665,000 to £8,812,000 (increase of £1,147,000) due to exceptional circumstances. CBMDC match funding has been increased from £2,736,000 to £3,016,000 (increase of £280,000). The total project value is £13,754,000.
(ii) The Combined Authority enters into an addendum to the existing Funding Agreement with Bradford Council for expenditure of up to £8,812,000 from the West Yorkshire Plus Transport Fund.
(iii) Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outlined in this report.
Lead officer: Freedom.Info@westyorks-ca.gov.uk
07/01/2022 - Leeds City Centre Network and Interchange Package - Armley Gyratory ref: 1146 Recommendations Approved
Approval for the scheme to progress through Activity 4 (Full Business Case)
(i) Phase 1 of the Leeds City Centre Package Armley Gyratory scheme proceeds through decision point 4 and work commences on activity 5 (Delivery).
(ii) Approval of £27,930,000 for Phase 1 of the Leeds City Centre Package Armley Gyratory scheme is given from the West Yorkshire plus Transport Fund, bringing the total approved to £31,510,000.
(iii) Phase 2 of the Leeds City Centre Package Armley Gyratory scheme continues to develop its Final Business Case.
(iv) Indicative Approval of £10,460,000 for Phase 2 of the Leeds City Centre Package Armley Gyratory scheme is given from the West Yorkshire plus Transport Fund.
(v) Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outlined in this report.
The following conditions have been set by PAT to gain Approval to Proceed to Delivery for Phase 1:
(i) Complete detailed design to inform a Target Cost (price) affordable to the scheme.
(ii) Conclude land acquisition and secure required licenses.
(iii) Evidence pre-scheme (Autumn 2021) Monitoring & Evaluation data capture
06/01/2022 - York Castle Gateway ref: 1145 Recommendations Approved
(i) The York Castle Gateway scheme proceeds through decision point 3 and work commences on activity 4 (Full business case)
(ii) An indicative approval to the total value of £4,600,000 is given from the West Yorkshire plus Transport Fund with full approval to spend once the package has progressed through the assurance process to decision point 5.
06/01/2022 - Bus Franchising Assessment Scheme ref: 1144 Recommendations Approved
Approval for the scheme to progress through Activity 2 (Strategic Outline Case)
(i) The Bus Franchising Needs Assessment project proceeds through decision point 2 (strategic outline case) and work commences on activity 4 (full business case).
(ii) An indicative approval to the total project value of £7,000,000 is given with full approval to spend being granted once the scheme has progressed through the assurance process to Decision Point 5.
(iii) Development costs of £1,000,000 are approved in order to progress the scheme to Decision Point 5, taking the total project approval to £1,000,000.
(iv) Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outlined in this report.


text:
How Lawrence Warunge planned gruesome murder of his family in Kiambu for 3 months
By Zadock Angira On Sun, 10 Jan, 2021 20:00 | 6 mins read
Relatives and residents of Karura village grief outside the home of a Kiambu family that was murdered earlier this week. [PHOTO: PAUL NJAU | MEDIAMAX DIGITAL]
Inspired by the psychopathic assassin Villanelle, real name Jodie Comer, in a British dark comedy-drama spy thriller TV series, Killing Eve, Lawrence Simon Warunge had planned to clear all his family members on Saturday January 2.
Warunge, 22, who has confessed to the murder of his parents, two siblings and a farmhand, and had described his parents to police as "satanic and killers" had planned the murder for about three months.
He had, however, told the girlfriend that there was something he wanted to do that would make them live in peace, for the rest of their life.
During this period, even as he watched movies, he also practiced how to camouflage, and commit the horrendous act without being noticed.
An investigation has revealed shocking revelation how the macabre massacre, which aborted three times with the second last planned for January 2, was planned and executed.
'Alibi'
That Saturday, he tried to convince the girlfriend, a teetotaller, to drink and smoke bhang, in vain. He expected the girl to pass out as he rushed to his rural home and butcher his kin and come back. He had hoped to use the girlfriend as an alibi after killing his family using carbon monoxide.
Detectives from the Homicide and the Crime Scene Investigations Units at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) headquarters on Saturday recovered crucial exhibits that has unravelled the multiple-victim homicide.
And the suspect has squarely been placed at the scene of crime with the detectives now trying to establish the motive.
The suspect had alleged that he felt neglected by the parents, and that his younger siblings were also siding with the parents.
"He claimed that he felt that the parents were out to kill him," a senior detective told People Daily.
First, the shoe prints impressions at the scene of crime which were recorded and documented at the scene matched those of the shoes that were recovered in Mai Mahiu on Saturday.
Detectives had done documentation to scale and later confirmed the measurements and sole patterns matched those of the shoes recovered in Mai Mahiu.
'Lone killer'
Though it was initially suspected that there were at least three killers at the scene, the probe had confirmed that the suspect was alone. After his shoes got soaked in blood, he removed them and walked in the house in his socks. He would later put on the shoes which were recovered in Mai Mahiu before finally putting on a woman's shoes. He bought the lady's shoes in Thika.
Detectives have managed, through thorough probe and suspect's confession to establish what transpired that fateful day.
Warunge asked the girlfriend to buy for him a knife in Thika. The nine-inch knife, with a metallic handle, was among the exhibits recovered on Saturday.
At Thika, the suspect also bought a pair of trousers, a jacket, a lady's shoes, a piece of wigs and a female doll. He later cut off the doll's head.
From Thika, the suspect proceeded to Nairobi CBD where he visited Uhuru Park and Holy Family Basilica.
Fearing that he could be searched at the church, he proceeded to one of the supermarkets where he deposited his luggage which were in a red carrier bag, containing the things he bought, plus the knife.
He left the supermarket with the luggage tag, leaving his bag behind, and proceeded to the church. At around 4pm, he went and boarded a Limuru-bound passenger vehicle and on reaching Limuru he took another vehicle home in Wangunyu, Kiambaa.
First killing
On reaching home, he found James Kinyanjui and asked him for a metal bar. He, however, did not disclose what he wanted to do with it. At one point, he was very nervous and when the deceased asked him, he simply said he had a lot of stress, without expounding.
He would later catch Kinyanjui unawares, and hit him at the back of the head several times before he cut his throat using the knife he had earlier bought in Thika. According to him, he decided to slit Kinjanjui's throat after he 'refused to die'.
A blood spatter analysis would later confirm that the blood pattern on the wall curtain emanated from a high pressure vein, the throat.
Warunge remained around the initial crime scene until around 8pm when he saw his father was driven home in a taxi.
The main attack
Shortly thereafter, he scaled the perimeter wall. He got shocked by the electric fence but still managed to get into the compound.
The father had brought home some bottles of Balozi beer, some of which were recovered in the house, the secondary scene.
While in the compound, he saw the mother in the kitchen and he proceeded to the main switch and disconnected the power.
He had some paraffin which he sprinkled on a green paper bag and set it on fire, just outside the kitchen door.
Curious to know what was happening, the mother got out and he hit her at the back of the head with the metal bar.
The brother, who heard the commotion and rushed to the door, oblivious of the impending danger was also attacked.
The mother fell down unconscious while the injured brother rushed back to the room.
All this while, the father who was taking some beer in the bedroom upstairs, was not aware that the family was under attack from their own son.
Shortly thereafter, on sensing some commotion, he went downstairs but met the son armed with a knife. He ran back but the son followed him.
Fearing for his life, he jumped from the bedroom balcony. He got injured and the son followed him where he stabbed him several times, before slitting his throat.
He would later hear the father attempting to open the gate, to escape. He pursued him and stabbed him even more, leaving him with his intestines out.
Investigations revealed that at this point he was only on his socks, as he had removed his blood-soaked shoes.
He then killed one of his brothers, Maxwell Njenga, a Class Seven pupil at Wangunyu primary school and went room for room looking for the other brother. He found the brother, Christian Njenga, hiding under his bed in his room. The younger brother pleaded with him to spare his life. He would hear none of that, and stabbed him several times before slitting his throat.
'No chills'
After killing the family members, he showered and ate the food the mother was preparing and later sat down and watched a programme of television.
He slept on his father's bed until around 4am when he woke up and asked for a lift in one of the delivery vans. He went to Naivasha and later went to Mai Mahiu, the rural home of his girlfriend who was by then in Thika.
There, he burnt some of his clothes and the mobile phones belonging to his parents which he had collected from the house. He later went to Lower Kabete where he was arrested.
On Friday at around midnight, he switched on his phone and detectives picked his signals.
The suspect, who has since his arrest not panicked or shown any remorse, told detectives that he was shocked to see family members crying and mourning the deaths. He bought some pepper which he would bite or spray in order to tear to appear like he was also mourning.
The exhibits recovered had been thrown into a pit latrine. He even took the detectives to an open field in the same area where he burnt some of the evidence.
The father had arrived in Kenya from the United States about a fortnight earlier where he worked as a nurse. Two of his daughters survived the cold blooded murder since they had gone to school the previous day. One of the sisters is a Form Four student at St Angela Girls School while the other is a Form Two student at Ngiriambu Girls School in Kirinyaga.
One of the witnesses in the case, Steve Njehu, told detectives that on the fateful day, they finished work and he proceeded to Karura shopping centre to relax after a hard day's work.
He came back at around 9pm and noticed that one of the curtains was blood stained, but the lights were on.
He got in and found his colleague James Kinyanjui lying in a pool of blood on a mattress in one of the rooms.
Police were called who later removed the body.
However, before they left, they knocked at the gate of the adjacent home to find out if the residents had heard anything during the fatal attack. There was no response and the officers concluded that the family had slept.
Strange enough, the suspect watched everything from his parents' room upstairs, even as police processed the primary scene and finally removed the body.
Tomorrow, detectives are expected to revisit the scene, together with the suspect in what is referred to as scene re-enactment where the suspect is expected, to voluntarily give a detailed account of how the murder was organised from the initial planning to the execution and subsequent disposal of murder weapons.
Everything, including the route used, how he scaled the wall, how the weapons were used, among other things, will be documented.
Autopsy of the slain victims will be conducted tomorrow at Kenyatta University mortuary where detectives are expected to extract further evidential material for toxicology and DNA samples, among others.
Are you a Kenyan in the diaspora with a story to tell? Do you know someone of Kenyan origin doing something remarkable in the diaspora? Do you have an opinion that you would like to share? Email us at [email protected]
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Astrid Jones desperately wants to confide in someone, but her mother's pushiness and her father's lack of interest tell her they're the last people she can trust. Instead, Astrid spends hours lying on the backyard picnic table watching airplanes fly overhead. She doesn't know the passengers inside, but they're the only people who won't judge her when she asks them her most personal questions--like what it means that she's falling in love with a girl.
There's no denying that A.S. King is a talented author. I'd definitely include this title on a list of YA books with a literary bent. It's much more character-driven than plot-driven, focusing on Astrid's attempts to figure out who she is and how to stand up for herself and her decisions. I really appreciated how fully fleshed out the characters were and the way that we see some of them grow and change, while others remain stuck in their same patterns. I also enjoyed the more fantastical elements of the story, particularly the portions where we see what is happening to the characters in airplanes passing overhead.
This is where things got a little bit more dicey for me. I just didn't fall in love with Astrid or really any other character in the story. They're all kind of horrible. And while we do see growth, mainly from Astrid, I don't think she's really accepted her right to be her own person by the end of the book.
I was particularly annoyed by her love interest, who is constantly pressuring her to do more physically than she wants to do. And while Astrid does learn to stand up to her, she remains a love interest for the entire book - despite forcing herself on Astrid. If she were a male character, there's no way the reader would be "allowed" to root for her and Astrid. So why is it different with her being a girl?
I liked the book and it sparked a great discussion amongst my FYA Book Club friends. We had a great time talking about it and I think I came away with a greater appreciation for it, but it still isn't a favorite. I applaud King's writing, but the plot just didn't grab me and the romance felt really coercive to me. I recommend it for fans of contemporary YA, those with an interest in LGBTQ themes, and "issue" books.


text:
Peggy Lynn MacIsaac
Inspire the Unimaginable!
Diaspora Higher Ed
Diaspora Higher Education: What's Next for Displaced Learners?
Originally published as an edited long read on the Journal of Interrupted Studies-Oxford Blog.
Peggy Lynn MacIsaac looks at the opportunities available to displaced learners seeking higher education, and at new long-distance initiatives providing for a growing diaspora of resettled students.
Sri Lankan students, © 2015 Jesuit Worldwide Learning.
Diaspora, n.: any group of people who have spread or become dispersed beyond their traditional homeland or point of origin. – Oxford English Dictionary
I live in a small northern town in Canada. The sign beside the highway as it dips toward the river displays a population of 2990. When I tell people that I study refugee distance learners, there are two common responses: one encouraging, and one not. Some people tell me amazing personal stories of how their friends or family members were refugees who resettled in Canada. Others, bewildered, attempt to explain why this population does not need tertiary education. My response to the naysayers is to draw examples from refugee history over the last seven decades, in an attempt to connect world politics to personal human experience. My most successful responses have become the basis for my local newspaper column, which includes among other vignettes Albert Einstein's experience as a refugee to the US and Canada's history of service to refugees, with a view to the fact that Canada's population is half that of the estimated number of forcibly displaced people globally.
Kakuma graduation, © 2015 Jesuit Worldwide Learning.
Higher education in emergencies serves learners in fragile contexts who are forcibly displaced, such as refugees, internally displaced persons, or asylum-seekers (RIDPAs). RIDPAs reside in a context of transition, without knowing whether they will return to their home of origin, resettle in a third location, or make their temporary location into their permanent home. Nor do they know if their transitional state will be short-term or protracted. In 2013, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that a protracted displacement has "continued into the second and third decades for some Somalis, Rwandans, Burundians, Liberians, Eritreans and Congolese exiles." RIDPAs occupy an ever-changing liminality of uncertain time and space often defined by what it is not, rather than what it is. Diaspora higher education, which I will use here, is a fitting designation for the fostering of meaningful tertiary learning in these liminal conditions.
At the end of 2014, an estimated 30 million people between the ages of 18 and 59 were forcibly displaced worldwide. From this population, there may be hundreds of thousands of displaced adults who have the capacity and desire to study at the tertiary level. Dryden-Peterson confirms both the significant demand and severely limited opportunities for diaspora higher education. The UNHCR recognises that the demand for tertiary education in emergencies is outpacing the capacity to create brick-and-mortar institutions, and encourages the expansion of "tertiary level open and distance learning for refugees". Recently, UNHCR Innovation, which describes itself as amplifying, connecting, and exploring opportunities for innovation within and outside the UNHCR, launched Connected Learning. This initiative uses current information communication technologies to address the needs of displaced learners through flexible connected education. Open and distance learning are viable options to provide internationally recognised, quality, scalable, and sustainable higher education to diaspora learners occupying liminal spaces.
As an academic librarian, I help people identify effective search strategies to find published works relevant to their individual research topics. I was surprised when my search for academic material on refugees and higher education returned so much irrelevant material. Searching in English, I found that most of the research investigated university students who had already resettled permanently in Canada, the US, the UK, or Australia. It became clear that the word refugee was being used to refer to individuals who might more correctly be identified as former refugees. Arguably, once a refugee has repatriated or resettled, then the term refugee no longer applies. However inaccurate, the designation 'refugee' lingers as a disservice to the individuals who are former refugees. In surveying the significantly smaller body of academic literature pertaining to diaspora higher education specifically, I found work on initiatives led by United Nations agencies, humanitarian organisations, international consortiums, and individual universities.
'RIDPAS' OCCUPY AN EVER-CHANGING LIMINALITY OF UNCERTAIN TIME AND SPACE OFTEN DEFINED BY WHAT IT IS NOT, RATHER THAN WHAT IT IS.
Many of the diaspora higher education initiatives I found make use of face-to-face, blended, or distance modes of learning, and support the capacity of the displaced learner to contribute to the rebuilding of their communities. International organisations have developed voluntary international standards for intervening in humanitarian crisis, which recognise the necessity of providing higher education to members of the diaspora. The most widely used of these is the Sphere Handbook: Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response. The Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) has worked with the Sphere Project to develop a companion document titled INEE Minimum Standards for Education: Preparedness, Response, Recovery. The INEE standards guide the collaborative work of UNESCO and UNHCR to provide education in emergencies. Together UNESCO, UNHCR, and INEE advocate for the provision of quality learning opportunities in technical, vocational, and higher education through face-to-face, blended, and distance education.
Kakuma students, © 2015 Jesuit Worldwide Learning.
Partnerships between agencies help to streamline the logistical challenges of diaspora higher education, allowing each agency to focus on doing what it does best. Jesuit Worldwide Learning: Higher Education at the Margins (JWL) has developed " a sustainable, scalable, transferable model to ensure those who live at the margins have access to higher education." This has positioned JWL as an excellent collaborator for any post-secondary institution interested in providing online or blended education opportunities for learners in emergencies. JWL is an example of an organisation that provides a framework through which any partner institution can deliver its curriculum and programmes. Other notable organisations delivering on-the-ground higher education are Borderless Higher Education for Refugees (BHER), Australian Catholic University's Thai-Burma Programme (ACU), Kenyatta University's Centre for Refugee Studies and Empowerment, and the Refugee Education Programmes for Kepler and Southern New Hampshire University. Post-secondary institutions' international agreements on the transferability of credited coursework open up opportunities for displaced learners, who may not know which country will provide a durable solution and permanent home.
HOWEVER INACCURATE, THE DESIGNATION 'REFUGEE' LINGERS AS A DISSERVICE TO THE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE FORMER REFUGEES.
Importantly, the recent growth in the number of open educational resources (OER) allows individuals to access quality educational opportunities online for free. Hundreds of tertiary institutions are members of the Open Courseware Consortium, which provides free online multilingual academic courses. The Open Educational Resources University (OERu) is a partnership of several higher education institutions that have converted some of their academic courses into free online ones,with the option of assessment and credentialing at affordable prices. Since the list of OERu partner institutions spans five continents, a diaspora distance learner can choose a partner institution through which to apply for credentialing that works with the learner's situation and location. One of the strengths in using open educational resources is the ability to factor in local contexts, thus demonstrating respect for the knowledge and assets the learner brings to the educational experience. Another strength is the use of the internet, open software, creative commons licensing, social media, and mobile applications to allow OER to be adapted to serve tens of students in a classroom, or thousands of students studying at a distance. The creation of appropriate curricula and the use of information and communications technologies can contribute to better diaspora higher education globally. This kind of innovation in higher education holds the hope for meeting the needs of adult learners in emergency contexts.
Working and studying at Athabasca University, Canada's open university, means I am able to live in a northern prairie town and connect to learners around the world. I experience open and distance learning as it reduces barriers to higher education, and am excited to explore their possible applications to diaspora higher education.
There is hope for adult learners who are refugees, internally displaced persons, or asylum-seekers. Providing higher education in emergencies demands an understanding and respect of the learner's fragile context in order to adequately adapt course design. These contexts include immediate challenges to learners' mobility, health, and security and the infrastructure of their locations. They also include the learners' level of access to social support and academic role models, as well as documentation of prior formal education. Meeting the demand for diaspora higher education clearly warrants a variety of innovative responses.