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September 15, 2019 RedSquareMaidan
Vandals spray paint swastika, deface graves of fallen WWII soldiers in Netherlands
A World War II cemetery that is the resting place for hundreds of British and Commonwealth soldiers in the Netherlands was the target of vandals who spray-painted a big swastika and random letters on many headstones. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) the vandals targeted the Mierlo War Cemetery in the southern region of Noord-Brabant, which is the final resting place for 658 soldiers who fought in the Second World War.
"My heart is crying," a woman told the BBC, whose parents helped to look after the cemetery for years. "Here are 17- and 18-year-old boys buried, who liberated us."
The CWGC said it was "appalled" by the vandalism, which it said occurred just days other vandals had damaged to the cemetery. "It is distressing to see the damage on the headstones themselves, behind every one of those war graves is a human story of someone who gave their life while in service," it said in a statement. Dutch news broadcaster Omroep Brabant expressed outrage over the vandalism with a reporter calling the acts "unbelievable"
A large swastika was daubed on the inner wall of the chapel in the British World War II Commonwealth Graves cemetery in Mierlo, east of Eindhoven, Netherlands, on September 13, 2019. (Photo by Rob Engelaar / ANP / AFP) / Netherlands OUT (Photo credit should read ROB ENGELAAR/AFP/Getty Images)
"It's not just a bit of daubing here, no, they've daubed everywhere," the reporter said. "There's a letter daubed on nearly every headstone. Unbelievable." Graffiti vandalism has started occurring at the cemetery in the lead up to the 75th anniversary of allied forces landing in the Netherlands to liberate the area from Nazi control during WWII, the BBC reported. Prince Charles is scheduled to attend a Dutch Memoriam of the 1944 Battle of Arnhem later this month.
A police officer walks past graves which have been vandalised with graffiti, and a large swastika was daubed on the inner wall of the chapel in the British World War II Commonwealth Graves cemetery in Mierlo, east of Eindhoven, Netherlands, on September 13, 2019. (Photo by Rob Engelaar / ANP / AFP) / Netherlands OUT (Photo credit should read ROB ENGELAAR/AFP/Getty Images)
The battle caused the British 1st Airborne Division to lose nearly 75 percent of its division as casualties. While the battle was considered a failure of the British army, Amhem is considered a symbol of their fighting spirit.
One example of graffiti sprayed on the site was "MH17 lie," referencing the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which was shot down over eastern Ukraine in 2014. Of the 298 people killed on the flight, 193 were Dutch. On Saturday morning, staff with the CWGC removed the graffiti from the graves and memorials.
Dutch police have urged anyone who could identify the vandals to come forward.
(C) Fox News 2019
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foccusser says:
"One example of graffiti sprayed on the site was "MH17 lie," referencing the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which was shot down over eastern Ukraine in 2014."
Russian nazis at work again no doubt.
There is only one group of people in the world that are upset about the facts of MH-17 and this group also has a long reputation of attacking cemeteries too. Shouldn't be too hard to find them, just look for trash, empty vodka bottles and a Russian accent….

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Use this starter to practise estimating the size of angles. If you know the difference between acute, obtuse and reflex angles you will be able to estimate with greater accuracy.
Try to get an average error as low as possible. Can you get one spot on?


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I was so happy to receive a request to provide art for the new @earlsrestaurants at Station Square in Burnaby!! I had to wait to share the news, but it's a done deal and you will be able to see my pieces there yay!!!


KARACHI :DS-Concept, a Multinational German based, global provider of trade finance solutions for export enterprises, has changed its name to Tradewind. The firm, a recognized leader in international export factoring, decided on the change in order to illustrate its prominent role in financing cross-border transactions, which resemble trade winds on the globe. Like the conductive climate its namesake's currents provide for trade, Tradewind propels commerce worldwide, with its network of more than 20 offices on 4 continents.
Via export factoring solutions of Tradewind Pakistan, suppliers can offer desired credit terms to their international buyers from 30 days up to 120 days without any risk and avail immediate post shipment finance in foreign exchange as well as security of their receivables. With more liquidity in hand, the supplier plans to further penetrate the international market and enhance ones business by grabbing potential buyers.
Mr. Rafi-ul-Hasan, Managing Director of Tradewind Pakistan.
The group has built an unrivaled reputation for the depth of its international finance expertise by maintaining a network of offices around the world including the USA, China, India, Hong Kong, UAE, Turkey, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iceland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Peru and its headquarters in Germany. Combining financing, credit protection, and collections into a single trade finance facility, Tradewind offers streamlined, flexible and best-in-class services.


Dr. Valeria Kulagina is the Founding Partner of IMEPOWER specializing in economic, market and regulatory aspects of energy sector's functioning, market design, pricing and tariff issues, privatization and restructuring, corporate governance, structuring of investment projects.
For more than 20 years Dr. Kulagina has been advising the Cabinet of Ministers, Parliament Committee on Fuel and Energy Sector, Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry, National Electricity & Utilities Regulatory Commission, State Property Fund, State Enterprise Energorynok, international investors, Ukrainian energy companies and IFIs.
Dr. Kulagina participated in drafting various legal and normative documents regulating the functioning of electricity market, restructuring of energy sector and privatization of energy companies.


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Belize City men see drugs charges dismissed
Orange Walk police investigate the identify of human remains
2 months for inappropriate touching
Published by Chris Garcia at May 18, 2016
Posted: Wednesday, May 18, 2016. 6:03 p.m. CST
By Aaron Humes: He "patted" a 10 year old child on her buttocks and told her not to say anything to anyone so he did not get into trouble with the law.
But 26 year old Ashton Lambey will spend 60 days in jail after the child immediately told her sister, who told her mother, who reported the matter to police.
On Sunday May 15, the 10 year old girl was at home doing homework, when her older sister told her to go downstairs to get the broom for her. Whilst downstairs, the child met Lambey who had the broom she needed to take for her sister.
The minor asked Lambey for the broom which he handed her and as the child turned away from him to walk back upstairs, that is when Lambey patted her on her buttocks.
The child said Lambey then told her, "Shoo. Don't tell anyone." But immediately after the child went upstairs, she told her sister what had happened and the sister told her mother who then called the police and reported the matter.
In court, Lambey after the charge was read wasted no time and pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to 2 months' imprisonment by Chief Magistrate Ann-Marie Smith; as a first-time offender who spared the court trouble, he avoided a maximum sentence of 3 years.


Sikorsky, March 02, 2007 - 07:25 02/03/2016ORLANDO, Florida - In a ceremony resembling a movie scene, Sikorsky Aircraft generated fog, the sounds of a storm at sea and flashes of lightning to unveil the first S-92 helicopter by Sikorsky dedicated to Search and Rescue at the world's largest helicopter gathering, Heli-Expo.
Sikorsky Aircraft is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp.
The new S-92 dedicated to SAR is entering service for the United Kingdom Maritime and Coastguard Agency in 2007. The helicopter unveiled today is the first of four brand new S-92 helicopters configured entirely for search and rescue. It will be delivered to the MCA for use primarily in the Highlands and Islands of the UK. The helicopter is owned and operated by CHC Helicopter Corp.
"Sikorsky Aircraft developed this uniquely capable helicopter for over-water search and rescue for one of the most demanding and challenging environments ever -- the North Sea," said Sikorsky President Jeffrey Pino. "Sikorsky has a long, rich history of both civil and military search and rescue. After more than 43,000 flight hours, the Sikorsky S-92 has demonstrated itself as a safe, reliable and cost-efficient platform, ideally suited for long-range transport missions in all-weather."
Richard Parkes, Director of Technical Services for the MCA, said the S-92s are in use on a variety of commercial duties around the world, proving their operational effectiveness and reliability. "The MCA are delighted to be able to receive these new Sikorsky Aircraft today specifically for use in the very challenging coastline around the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. These faster new aircraft will be able to fly further to people at sea than those currently in use, and in the temperatures of our northern seas every second can count towards the survival of those in distress" he said.
With improvements added to the S-92 to tailor it for the search and rescue mission, the S-92 can go farther with two internal auxiliary fuel tanks of 210 gallons each. New SAR options include an Automatic Flight Control System with auto-hover capability, FLIR, dual rescue hoist, full sliding-door with bubble window, cargo hook, search-light and loud hailer. The spacious cabin is designed to offer the utmost flexibility for installing a triple medical litter kit, one or two aux fuel tanks, folding utility seats and ample storage.
The designated operator console provides search data including FLIR, enhancing crew coordination and mission success. In addition, the cabin is designed to be flexible, to allow for quick and easy removal or installation of interior elements, and can carry 10, 12 or 19 passengers, depending on the mission.


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byron hoot on "Dry January" by David Daniel
Steve O'Connor on Living Madly: Great Brook
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Changing Lowell's Voting Method
August 21, 2019 by DickH Posted in Lowell 1 Comment
Prof Theodore Arrington, city's expert on statistics and voting systems
The city of Lowell hosted an information session last evening at the Lowell Senior Center to acquaint residents with the election system options available in the settlement of the lawsuit against the city for alleged violations of the federal Voting Rights Act. The primary speaker was Professor Theodore Arrington who has been retained by the city as its expert witness for statistics and voting systems. City Solicitor Christine O'Connor assisted in answering questions.
Professor Arrington explained that the plaintiffs brought the lawsuit under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, specifically the portion of Section 2 that outlaws "vote dilution." Most claims in this section allege that a city's use of at-large/multimember elections (as we have in Lowell) prevent minority voters from casting sufficient votes to elect their preferred candidates thereby allowing a cohesive majority group to win every seat in every election.
The lead case that interprets this section of the law, Thornburg v. Gingles, a 1986 U.S. Supreme Court decision, established a three part statistical test to determine a violation. Professor Arrington emphasized that the evidence needed to win a lawsuit like this was entirely statistical and that intent was not relevant. He then said that when he reviewed census data for Lowell and historic and detailed election results, he concluded that the plaintiffs passed "the Gingles test" and would win at trial. For that reason, he said the City Council was prudent to have settled the case since going to trial would have cost the city millions of dollars in legal fees and would have further divided the city politically.
Most of the presentation was spent reviewing the settlement in which the parties agreed to four different voting methods that were all acceptable to the plaintiffs. It is up to the City Council, no later than December 3, 2019, to choose one of those systems to be used in future Lowell city elections beginning in 2021.
The settlement also gives the City Council the option of designating two of the possible voting methods as "finalists" and placing a referendum question on the November 2019 city election ballot which would ask voters to express their preference of those two choices.
Professor Arrington explained that the council is not required to put these questions on the ballot, nor is it required to accept the one that gets the most votes in the referendum, but the reason for that is a legal one. It is the council's responsibility to make the decision and the council cannot legally delegate that responsibility to the voters by making the referendum a binding one. Although he never came right out and said it, Professor Arrington clearly implied that the council would almost certainly be guided by the will of the voters as expressed in the referendum.
As for the four systems, here they are:
Option 1: DISTRICT BASED REPRESENTATION
9 city council districts with one councilor each
At least 2 districts would be drawn to be majority-minority
The top vote-getter in that district wins the seat
Total of 9 councilors
School committee, there would be 3 districts
Each school committee district consists of 3 council districts
At least one school committee district to be majority-minority
Top 2 candidates in each school committee district would win
Total of 6 school committee members
Mayor still elected by councilors; still serves on school committee
District lines drawn by independent expert based on 2020 Census
Option 2: MIX OF DISTRICTS AND AT-LARGE ("HYBRID")
Hybrid 8/1 System
8 city council districts with one councilor elected from each
1 councilor elected citywide
School committee has 4 districts
Mayor still elected by council; still serves on school committee
At least two council districts to be majority-minority
Increases council to 11 members
3 councilors elected citywide
All else the same as 8/1 above
At least 2 districts drawn to be majority-minority
7 school committee districts with one member elected from each
School committee uses same districts as council
Mayor elected by council but WOULD NOT serve on school committee
Option 3: AT-LARGE RANKED CHOICE VOTING
9 councilors
6 school committee members
All run at-large (throughout city, just as now)
Instead of voting for up to 9 councilors and 6 SC members, voters rank order the candidates based on voter preference
Also known as "single transferable vote." You only get one vote but if your #1 choice wins by a lot or loses by a lot, your one vote gets transferred to your #2 choice, then your #3 choice, and so on, until all offices are filled.
Option 4: THREE DISTRICT REPRESENTATION
City divided into 3 districts
3 councilors elected from each district
2 school committee members elected from each district
Use RANKED CHOICE VOTING within districts
So those are the four options. Remember, the plaintiffs in the lawsuit have already expressed their preference: they would be content with any of these four. It is now up to the 9 current city councilors to choose which system will be used in Lowell beginning with the 2021 city election.
In the coming days, I will try to write more about this issue, sharing some of the questions that have arisen at the information sessions I have attended.
Lowell Votes, an independent voter advocacy and civic engagement group, is sponsoring an information session tomorrow night (Thursday, August 22, 2019) at 6pm at the Lowell Housing Authority's Armand Mercier Center at 21 Salem Street. Everyone is welcome to attend.
One Response to Changing Lowell's Voting Method
Paul Early says: August 21, 2019 at 10:17 pm
Thanks Dick for your post it as usual is thorough. I brought my daughter, about to turn 18 and my brother Lance from out of town to the event. He was quite impressed. We discussed the various options. At first I seemed to think that the district options would be the best. Then I started thinking about the long term and the disadvantages of the various systems. It seemed to us that the ranked choice options have a steeper voter curve to get started than options 1 or 2, but they would not last long. And the disadvantages of 1 & 2 would be to encourage long term incumbency.
I foresee that districts would promote more parochialism or provincialism and as minority groups start to spread out more through the city it will become harder and harder to define the districts. This can lead to more division over setting district boundaries. I can also see that there could be grumbling about the fact that someone's cousin is not in their district.
The ranked choice would tend to minimize this, especially option 3. Ranked choice would continue to take into account minority groups no matter how they spread throughout the city. The last two options, 3 & 4, would also allow for a greater variety of positions to be supported in city government, in other words it would allow for a greater diversity of representation, not just for minority ethnic and racial groups, but for all groups.