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Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Lawyering, Politics, Society, Supreme Court	 June 29, 2009 June 29, 2009
Supreme Court Rules 5-4 to Reverse Sotomayor Ruling in New Haven Firefighters Case
As expected, the Supreme Court voted in Ricci v. DeStefano, the New Haven firefighters case, to reverse the decision of the Second Circuit panel, which included Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. Also as expected, Justice Kennedy played the swing vote in giving cities a new defense in such cases. Kennedy wrote the majority opinion. The fear of litigation was not sufficient to justify the discrimination against white and Hispanic firefighters. Firefighters challenged a decision to throw out promotional exam results because no African-American firefighters were among the top scoring candidates for promotion — only white and Hispanic officers. Judge Sonia Sotomayor was on the panel that upheld the city's decision in one of her most controversial decisions.
Writing for the majority, Justice Kennedy held:
Our analysis begins with this premise: The City's actions would violate the disparate-treatment prohibition of Title VII absent some valid defense. All the evidence demonstrates that the City chose not to certify the examination results because of the statistical disparity based on race—i.e., how minority candidates had performed when compared to white candidates. As the District Court put it, the City rejected the test results because "too many whites and not enough minorities would be promoted were the lists to be certified." 554 F. Supp. 2d, at 152; see also ibid. (respondents' "own arguments . . . show that the City's reasons for advocating non-certification were related to the racial distribution of the results"). Without some other justification, this express, race-based decisionmaking violates Title VII's command that employers cannot take adverse employment actions because of an individual's race. See §2000e–2(a)(1).
Of the forty-one applicants who took the captain exam, only eight were black. Of the seventy-seven applicants who took the lieutenant exam, only 19 were black. No of the African-American candidates scored high enough to be promoted. Only two Hispanics scored sufficiently high enough to be promoted.
The city tossed out the results due to concerns over possible disparate impact claims by minorities under the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Earlier, I expressed serious reservations about the case and the way that the panel handled it. The opinion was largely conclusory and notably failed to address the difficult constitutional questions raised by the firefighters:
Nothing in the record in this case suggests that the City defendants or CSB acted "because of" discriminatory animus toward plaintiffs or other non-minority applicants for promotion. Rather, they acted based on the following concerns: that the test had a statistically adverse impact on African-American and Hispanic examinees; that promoting off of this list would undermine their goal of diversity in the Fire Department and would fail to develop managerial role models for aspiring firefighters; that it would subject the City to public criticism; and that it would likely subject the City to Title VII lawsuits from minority applicants that, for political reasons, the City did not want to defend. "[T]he intent to remedy the disparate impact of [the tests] is not equivalent to an intent to discriminate against non-minority applicants." Hayden, 180 F.3d at51. None of the defendants' expressed motives could suggest to a reasonable juror that defendants acted "because of" animus against non-minority firefighters who took the Lieutenant and Captain exams.
While expressing sympathy for the firefighters, the panel gives their claims short shrift. As Judge Jose Cabranes who was highly critical of the way the panel dismissed the legitimate concerns of these firefighters: "Indeed, the opinion contains no reference whatsoever to the constitutional claims at the core of this case. … This perfunctory disposition rests uneasily with the weighty issues presented by this appeal." Not much empathy showed in this case.
Kennedy found a violation of Title VII in the decision by the city. The Supreme Court cited prior holdings to hold:
If an employer cannot rescore a test based on the candidates' race, §2000e–2(l), then it follows a fortiori that it may not take the greater step of discarding the test altogether to achieve a more desirable racial distribution of promotion-eligible candidates—absent a strong basis in
evidence that the test was deficient and that discarding the results is necessary to avoid violating the disparate- impact provision. Restricting an employer's ability to discard test results (and thereby discriminate against qualified candidates on the basis of their race) also is in keeping with Title VII's express protection of bona fide promotional examinations. See §2000e–2(h) ("[N]or shall it be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to If an employer cannot rescore a test based on the candidates' race, §2000e–2(l), then it follows a fortiori that it may not take the greater step of discarding the test altogether to achieve a more desirable racial distribution of promotion-eligible candidates—absent a strong basis in evidence that the test was deficient and that discarding the results is necessary to avoid violating the disparate- impact provision. Restricting an employer's ability to discard test results (and thereby discriminate against qualified candidates on the basis of their race) also is in keeping with Title VII's express protection of bona fide promotional examinations. See §2000e–2(h) ("[N]or shall it be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to
25 Cite as: 557 U. S. ____ (2009) Opinion of the Court give and to act upon the results of any professionally developed ability test provided that such test, its administration or action upon the results is not designed, intended or used to discriminate because of race"); cf. AT&T Corp. v. Hulteen, 556 U. S. ___, ___ (2009) (slip op., at 8). For the foregoing reasons, we adopt the strong-basis-in-evidence standard as a matter of statutory construction to resolve any conflict between the disparate-treatment and disparate-impact provisions of Title VII.
Justice Alito wrote a concurrence solely to respond to what he and Thomas and Scalia viewed as selective presentation of facts by the dissenting justice — who accuse the majority of the same thing.
Justice Ginsburg in dissent insists that better tests were available and that the majority misconstrues the good-faith basis of the city:
The white firefighters who scored high on New Haven's promotional exams understandably attract this Court's sympathy. But they had no vested right to promotion. Nor have other persons received promotions in preference to them. New Haven maintains that it refused to certify the test results because it believed, for good cause, that it would be vulnerable to a Title VII disparate-impact suit if it relied on those results. The Court today holds that New Haven has not demonstrated "a strong basis in evidence" for its plea. Ante, at 2. In so holding, the Court pretends that "[t]he City rejected the test results solely because the higher scoring candidates were white." Ante, at 20. That pretension, essential to the Court's disposition, ignores substantial evidence of multiple flaws in the tests New Haven used. The Court similarly fails to acknowledge the better tests used in other cities, which have yielded less racially skewed outcomes.1
While expressing sympathy, the dissenting justices would still allow the city to throw out the results based on the fact that whites did better in the final scores. However, she noted that there were complaints about access to materials:
A number of the exam questions, they pointed out, were not germane to New Haven's practices and procedures. See, e.g., id., at A774–A784. At least two candidates opposed to certification noted unequal access to study materials. Some individuals, they asserted, had the necessary books even before the syllabus was issued. Others had to invest substantial sums to purchase the materials and "wait a month and a half for some of the books because they were on back-order." Id., at A858. These disparities, it was suggested, fell at least in part along racial lines. While many Caucasian applicants could obtain materials and assistance from relatives in the fire service, the over-whelming majority of minority applicants were "first-generation firefighters" without such support networks.
See id., at A857–A861, A886–A887.
Justice Scalia's concurrence takes a broader view, challenging the use of race-based remedial actions generally:
To be sure, the disparate-impact laws do not mandate imposition of quotas, but it is not clear why that should provide a safe harbor. Would a private employer not be guilty of unlawful discrimination if he refrained from establishing a racial hiring quota but intentionally designed his hiring practices to achieve the same end? Surely he would. Intentional discrimination is still occurring, just one step up the chain. Government compulsion of such design would therefore seemingly violate equal protection principles. Nor would it matter that Title VII requires consideration of race on a wholesale, rather than retail, level. "[T]he Government must treat citizens as individuals, not as simply components of a racial, religious, sexual or national class." Miller v. Johnson, 515 U. S. 900, 911 (1995) (internal quotation marks omitted). And of course the purportedly benign motive for the disparate-impact provisions cannot save the statute. See Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Peña, 515 U. S. 200, 227 (1995). To be sure, the disparate-impact laws do not mandate imposition of quotas, but it is not clear why that should provide a safe harbor. Would a private employer not be guilty of unlawful discrimination if he refrained from establishing a racial hiring quota but intentionally designed his hiring practices to achieve the same end? Surely he would. Intentional discrimination is still occurring, just one step up the chain. Government compulsion of such design would therefore seemingly violate equal protection principles. Nor would it matter that Title VII requires consideration of race on a wholesale, rather than retail, level. "[T]he Government must treat citizens as individuals, not as simply components of a racial, religious, sexual or national class." Miller v. Johnson, 515 U. S. 900, 911 (1995) (internal quotation marks omitted). And of course the purportedly benign motive for the disparate-impact provisions cannot save the statute. See Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Peña, 515 U. S. 200, 227 (1995).
All of these opinions are quite interesting. My concern with the dissent is that it sweeps far too broadly. While Kennedy does not go as far as Scalia, he creates more of a balanced approach to the use of such remedial measures without barring them entirely. It is a decision with which I expect most Americans would agree. It will be interesting to see if Congress attempts to amend the law to negate the ruling. The optics in "putting a thumb on the scale" of a test for firefighters is not good.
As for Sotomayor, these opinions have all of the substance that is missing in the Second Circuit opinion. Judge Cabranes is proven correct about the deeper issues here. One of my greatest concerns about Judge Sotomayor has been the lack of any deeper or more profound analysis in her opinions, which all too often tend to dismiss such issues. For an analysis of her opinions, click here.
Here is today's opinion 07-1428, which is a major ruling in discrimination law.
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52 thoughts on "Supreme Court Rules 5-4 to Reverse Sotomayor Ruling in New Haven Firefighters Case"
Mike Appleton says:
mespo, exactly! LOL.
Mike A:
"As for those who complain that white persons in the present generation should not have to continue paying for the sins of our fathers, all I can say is that every generation pays for the sins of the previous generation. That is not a reason to complain. It is simply a reason to stop sinning so that our children will not have to continue to pay for it."
Is there any doubt that we enjoy the beneficial legacy of our predecessors? Why then should we not be burdened with their debts?
Tell the Bank your grandfather left you the car and that you therefore shouldn't have to make the last three payments!
There has been an amazing amount of controversy over this decision, but I am struck by two things. First, opponents of Judge Sotomayor began savaging her within five minutes after the decision was released. Now I may not be a particularly fast reader, but the opinion is over 90 pages long (I haven't even finished going through it completely word for word as yet). Thus, I think it's safe to say that much of the criticism came from people who did not, and probably never will, actually read the opinion. Led by people like Rush Limbaugh, who allowed as how the decision meant that the Supreme Court had unanimously branded Judge Sotomayor a bigot, the hysteria is absurd.
My second observation is that the decision resolves absolutely nothing. Nada. All it ultimately means is that the effort to relieve the effects of centuries of evil is messy and that we do not have a consensus as to when or how that effort will come to a conclusion.
Mike Spindell's recollection of his own experiences with affirmative action perfectly illustrates the inherent difficulty in fashioning solutions to a legacy of discrimination without inadvertent harm to those who are themselves innocent of the sins of intolerance and discrimination. It is not possible. It has never been possible. But that does not mean that the effort is not warranted.
All of my life I have heard comments like, "Lincoln freed the slaves 150 years ago. What have blacks done for themselves since then?" Or, "The Supreme Court abolished segregated schools in Brown v. Education in 1954. What's their excuse now?" Or, "We passed all of the civil rights laws in the '60s and blacks are still not satisfied."
But my favorite has always been, "You can't legislate morality." Nonsense. That is what legislatures do every day. What you can't legislate is compliance with laws with which large segments of the population disagree. The Emancipation Proclamation may have had great symbolic importance, but it didn't end slavery. Brown v. Board of Education may have outlawed separate but equal education, but the states simply refused to comply with its mandates. The civil rights laws may have voided segregation ordinances and barriers to voting by blacks, but those restrictions remained in place by tradition and through intimidation for many years, and still exist in some places.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 sought, among other things, to promote the amelioration of the effects of long-term discrimination. The legislation outlined the public policy goals, but it has been left largely to the courts to determine how that policy is to be implemented on a case-by-case basis. That means that lawyers have had to develop legal theories in an effort to enforce the intent of the legislation, and courts have had to decide which of those theories have legal merit given the legislative history. The results have not always been predictable or even coherent.
The decision in Ricci v. DeStefano reflects that a majority of the court believes that the concerns which led to the 1972 extension of Title VII protections to public employees no longer exist, or are at least no longer significant, thus supporting a determination to impose a greater burden of proof on future claims. That is a philosophical conclusion which, if anything, proves only the fallacy in the argument that good judges make decisions uninfluenced by their life experiences and perceptions. What it will mean in future cases is anybody's guess.
Ken in Tucson says:
1) Tests can be biased if the questions are culturally biased.
2) Tests can be biased if equal access to study materials are not supplied (as was asserted by the plaintiffs).
I don't know that either of the two conditions above were in fact the case. I do suspect that a written test is not an inclusive (or even particularly valid) metric for determining promotions in the field of fire fighting. I liked the suggestion that the test be made pass/fail. All those who passed the test would be eligible for promotion. Oral interviews and/or practical tests would then be used to choose who gets promoted.
I would also submit that a test isn't necessarily biased just because it didn't provide the results that were expected – not with the small sample size. Sometimes we get statistically anomalous results.
Just to be clear, I agree with the decision in this case. Once the procedure for promotion had been announced and the results came back, it's too late to deny promotion based on the procedure. It would be a good idea to look at the procedure in the future. Affirmative action does not require a lowering of standards, but it may require taking a good look at those standards to ensure that they actually reflect the qualities necessary for performance of the job.
I agree with the decision, but I can't understand how some can be view it as a simple case. It may appear simple on the surface, but there are a lot of issues that run deeper than the surface.
Anonymously Yours says:
Gary T,
I must be missing something as well. If I only had a brain. The headlines in yesterdays papers was: White Firefighters Win. The problem with that is Hispanic or Mexican's won as well. It was a bullshit decision by the city to deny the Whites and Hispanic because no other racial class was in the test.
Gary T says:
I must be missing something here.
With the presumption that
1. The applicants have no correllation between skill/intelligence and race, and
2. Presuming that the tests actually are testing for an applicant's job's qualifications and competence –
How exactly can a test be racially biased. Everything is equal, where is the bias?
So the SCOTUS will now permit municipalities to engage in disparate impact discrimination against minorities in order to avoid disparate treatment discrimination against white males. All a city would have to do is devise a facially race neutral test for promotions that in practice is biased in favor of white candidates. (There was some evidence in the Firefighters case that written tests in general have this effect). Then, when the results are in and the statistical evidence of a disparate impact is present, the city could do a cursory review of how the test was devised and administered to show that it was race neutral. That way, there would be no "strong basis in evidence" to think that disparate impact discrimination under Title VII had occurred. The city would be compelled to certify the test results even though a thorough analysis of the test may well have shown the it was not "job related . . . and consistent with business necessity", as required under the re-codified Title VII. As Ginsburg showed in the dissent, written tests may not be job-related for promotion of firefighters to lieutenant or captain because they may not show how candidates would react in actual fires. Assessment center tests may well be fairer and non-discriminatory. But now, cities will never have to determine those issues because all they have to do is show that the test they gave was racially neutral.
With Congress re-codifying disparate impact discrimination under Title VII in 1991, one would think that the SCOTUS would give equal weight to that form of discrimination, rather than giving preference to disparate treatment discrimination. Instead, SCOTUS has now said that it's okay to engage in employment practices that may be discriminatory against minorities, so long as you don't look too carefully once the results are in. For some reason, I expect more from my Supreme Court.
Instead of this ridiculous result, Ginsburg showed how the two parts of Title VII could be harmonized. If, faced with test results that statistically favored whites, a city investigated and determined that (a) those results are due to the nature of the test and (b) the test is not job-related and consistent with business necessity, then the decision not to certify those results would not constitute disparate treatment discrimination. The decision not to certify would not be motivated by a desire to deny whites the promotions, but to come up with a test that is fair to all. Isn't that what we want our municipalities to do? Apparently, the SCOTUS doesn't think so.
Mike Spindell says:
My take on Title VII and on this whole issue is perhaps somewhat different than the views so far expressed. From my perspective all of this hearkens back to the seminal moment in the modern civil right movement, Brown vs. Board of Ed. The plaintiffs asserted that a separate education for Blacks was an unequal one and SCOTUS agreed. The basic point was that in legally segregated (and in fact areas segregated without the force of statute) school systems, the Afro-American systems were consistently underfunded and neglected. The plaintiffs sought relief from this provably unfair state. Later on congressional Civil Rights Acts sought to redress the harm that segregation and indeed oppression against Afro-Americans
had done in devastating their communities and keeping them in inferior status.
What I have always found curious about the means of redress is that their solutions always placed the most overwhelming burden on middle and lower class whites. As a for instance it was working class schools that were first integrated, setting up things like the Boston School Protests. The answer to segregated schools primarily should have been to ensure that Afro-Americans would have an equally funded public education, but instead the emphasis fell on integration of students alone, without the addition of providing adequate funding.
Without a doubt when it comes to affirmative action the playing field also began redressing the grievances by putting Afro-American's directly against the working classes and middle classes. This has caused tremendous blow back, perhaps due to the Law of Unintended Consequence but also perhaps by design. It is curious that the burden of all of this has been least felt by the wealthiest of Americans, who arguably had been the greatest beneficiaries of slavery and then segregation in the first place. Indeed, one of the main
empowerment's of segregation was that poor whites in the South, who were also being cheated economically/socially, were kept from seeing their own predicament by having them focus on Black people with the message: "You're better than all of them and you can treat them as inferiors. Help keep them in their places."
Simultaneously, affirmative action for the rich remained in effect all through this society. Need we remind anyone who claims that some unqualified minority attended school, that GW Bush got into Yale via affirmative action for rich white people. Yet the treatment of the rich and connected is scarcely ever brought into this debate. The hypocrisy of all this is that one of the majority votes at least was cast by Clarence Thomas who most probably benefited himself from affirmative action and who knows which other judges of the five benefited from some form of affirmative action.
Now for those who are so indignant about the harm done by affirmative action, how many of you have personally suffered from it? I have. During the Koch Administration in NYC I was up for a Deputy Borough Director's job for the NYC Special Services for Children (child abuse and neglect). I was extremely well qualified and at the time this was my dream job. The Borough Director, who interviewed me, was an old friend and would be my boss wanted me. He was instructed, by
City Hall to give the job to an Afro-American woman because of her color. While I thought I was better by far, she was no slouch as it turned out. Was I disappointed, you're damned right I was. However, in the NYC government the better jobs often went to people whose chief ability was that they were children of wealthy families, whose parents contributed to the particular Mayor in power. Many of them were completely incompetent and most of them were white.
In one instance I had to take over and reconstruct a large
Contracts Department from a Yale Graduate, from a good white family, who dressed impeccably and turned out to be a raving schizophrenic and had to be hospitalized. He had held the job for a year and a half of destruction to the particular department before being removed and subsequently hospitalized. When this affirmative action affected me I had already worked for NYC for twenty years and was well aware of the fact that affirmative action rarely gave the real plum jobs to blacks, but was reserved for an "old boy/girl"
and so I could accept that this time around it didn't go my way. Also considering that the man who would be my boss was also a long time friend and ally, was I receiving affirmative action in the first place?
In this particular case, while I'm swayed by Justice's Ginsburg's minority argument, I also agree with Jonathan, who on his Keith appearance last night said that this was a case, said that this was a case where disagreement from could be well argued from either side.
Jim Byrne says:
The younger crowd won't get this, but I can remember listening to the back of cereal boxes.
Bob,Esq. says:
Mespo,
Would you mind if I used this as a 'blurb' for St. Peter when I reach the Pearly Gates?
"Bob is neither simple nor an avid reader of cereal boxes."
Bob,Esq:
"Will you be seeking out the doctor 'got some help' climbing the ladder of medical knowledge via affirmative action; or will you be begging for that House M.D. like diagnostician who earned his position and prestige the same way they'd been doing it since the creation of the Hippocratic Oath? The hard & honest way."
By the way Bob, I would want the best doc I can find.
Darryl & Bob,Esq:
Bob is neither simple nor an avid reader of cereal boxes. Now those Kant books– that's a different story. Good dialog as always, Bob.


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Lars Hansen's Nobel
Lars has done so much deep and pathbreaking research, that I can't begin to even list it, to say nothing of explain the small part of it that I understand. I wrote whole chapters of my textbook "Asset Pricing" devoted to just one Hansen paper. Lars writes for the ages, and it often takes 10 years or more for the rest of us to understand what he has done and how important it is.
So I will just try to explain GMM and the consumption estimates, the work most prominently featured in the Nobel citation. Like all of Lars' work, it looks complex at the outset, but once you see what he did, it is actually brilliant in its simplicity.
The GMM approach basically says, anything you want to do in statistical analysis or econometrics can be written as taking an average.
For example, consider the canonical consumption-based asset pricing model, which is where he and Ken Singleton took GMM out for its first big spin. The model says, we make sense of out of asset returns -- we should understand the large expected-return premium for holding stocks, and why that premium varies over time (we'll talk about that more in the upcoming Shiller post) -- by the statement that the expected excess return, discounted by marginal utility growth, should be zero
where Et means conditional expectation, beta and gamma capture investor's impatience and risk aversion, c is consumption and R is a stock or bond return and Rf is a bond return. E(R-Rf) is the premium -- how much you expect to earn on a risky asset over a riskfree one, as compensation for risk. (Non-economists, just ignore the equations. You'll get the idea). Expected returns vary over time and across assets in puzzling ways, but the expected discounted excess return should always be zero.
How do we take this to data? How do we find parameters beta and gamma that best fit the data? How do we check this over many different times and returns, to see if those two parameters can explain lots of facts? What do we do about that conditional expectation Et, conditional on information in people's heads? How do we bring in all the variables that seem to forecast returns over time (D/P) and across assets (value, size, etc.)? How do we handle the fact that return variance changes over time, and consumption growth may be autocorrelated?
When Hansen wrote, this was a big headache. No, suggested Lars. Just multiply by any variable z that you think forecasts returns or consumption, and take the unconditional average of this conditional average, and the model predicts that the unconditional average obeys
So, just take this average in the data. Now, you can do this for lots of different assets R and lots of different "instruments" z, so this represents a lot of averages. Pick beta and gamma that make some of the averages as close to zero as possible. Then look at the other averages and see how close they are to zero.
Lars worked out the statistics of this procedure -- how close should the other averages be to zero, and what's a good measure of the sample uncertainty in beta and gamma estimates -- taking in to account a wide variety of statistical problems you could encounter. The latter part and the proofs make the paper hard to read. When Lars says "general" Lars means General!
But using the procedure is actually quite simple and intuitive. All of econometrics comes down to a generalized version of the formula sigma/root T for standard errors of the mean. (I recommend my book "Asset Pricing" which explains how to use GMM in detail.)
The results were not that favorable to the consumption model. If you look hard, you can see the equity premium puzzle -- Lars and Ken needed huge gamma to fit the difference between stocks and bonds, but then couldn't fit the level of interest rates. But that led to an ongoing search -- do we have the right utility function? Are we measuring consumption correctly? And that is now bearing fruit.
GMM is really famous because of how it got used. We get to tests parts of the model without writing down the whole model. Economic models are quantiative parables, and we get to examine and test the important parts of the parable without getting lost in irrelevant details.
What do these words mean? Let me show you an example. The classic permanent income model is a special case of the above, with quadratic utility. If we model income y as an AR(1) with coefficient rho, then the permanent income model says consumption should follow a random walk with innovations equal to the change in the present value of future income:
This is the simplest version of a "complete" model that I can write down. There are fundamental shocks, the epsilon; there is a production technology which says you can put income in the ground and earn a rate of return r, and there is an interesting prediction -- consumption smooths over the income shocks.
Now, here is the problem we faced before GMM. First, computing the solutions of this sort of thing for real models is hard, and most of the time we can't do it and have to go numerical. But just to understand whether we have some first-order way to digest the Fama-Shiller debate, we have to solve big hairy numerical models? Most of which is beside the point? The first equations I showed you were just about investors, and the debate is whether investors are being rational or not. To solve that, I have to worry about production technology and equilibrium?
Second, and far worse, suppose we want to estimate and test this model. If we follow the 1970s formal approach, we immediately have a problem. This model says that the change in consumption is perfectly correlated with income minus rho times last year's income. Notice the same error epsilon in both equations. I don't mean sort of equal, correlated, expected to be equal, I mean exactly and precisely equal, ex-post, data point for data point.
If you hand that model to any formal econometric method (maximum likelihood), it sends you home before you start. There is no perfect correlation in the data, for any parameter values. This model is rejected. Full stop.
Wait a minute, you want to say. I didn't mean this model is a complete perfect description of reality. I meant it is a good first approximation that captures important features of the data. And this correlation between income shocks and consumption shocks is certainly not an important prediction. I don't think income is really an AR(1), and most of all I think agents know more about their income than my simple AR(1). But I can't write that down, because I don't see all their information. Can't we just look at the consumption piece of this and worry about production technology some other day?
In this case, yes. Just look whether consumption follows a random walk. Run the change in consumption on a bunch of variables and see if they predict consumption. This is what Bob Hall did in his famous test, the first test of a part of a model that does not specify the whole model, and the first test that allows us to "condition down" and respect the fact that people have more information than we do. (Lars too walks on the shoulders of giants.) Taking the average of my first equation is the same idea, much generalized.
So the GMM approach allows you to look at a piece of a model -- the intertemporal consumption part, here -- without specifying the whole rest of the model -- production technology, shocks, information sets. It allows you to focus on the robust part of the quantitative parable -- consumption should not take big predictable movements -- and gloss over the parts that are unimportant approximations -- the perfect correlation between consumption and income changes. GMM is a tool for matching quantitative parables to data in a disciplined way.
This use of GMM is part of a large and, I think, very healthy trend in empirical macroeconomics and finance. Roughly at the same time, Kydland and Prescott started "calibrating" models rather than estimating them formally, in part for the same reasons. They wanted to focus on the "interesting" moments and not get distracted by the models' admitted abstractions and perfect correlations.
Formal statistics asks "can you prove that this model is not a 100% perfect representation of reality" The answer is often "yes," but on a silly basis. Formal statistics does not allow you to say "does this model captures some really important pieces of the picture?" Is the glass 90% full, even if we can prove it's missing the last 10%?
But we don't want to give up on statistics, which much of the calibration literature did. We want to pick parameters in an objective way that gives models their best shot. We want to measure how much uncertainty there is in those parameters. We want to know how precise our predictions for the "testing" moments are. GMM lets you do all these things. If you want to "calibrate" on the means (pick parameters by observations such as the mean consumption/GDP ratio, hours worked, etc.), then "test" on the variances (relative volatility of consumption and output, autocorrelation of output, etc.), GMM will let you do that. And it will tell you how much you really know about parameters (risk aversion, substitution elasticities, etc.) from those "means", how accurate your predictions about "variances" are, including the degrees of freedom chewed up in estimation!
In asset pricing, similar pathologies can happen. Formal testing will lead you to focus on strange portfolios, thousands of percent long some assets and thousands of percent short others. Well, those aren't "economically interesting." There are bid/ask spread, price pressure, short constraints and so on. So, let's force the model to pick parameters based on interesting, robust moments, and let's evaluate the model's performance on the actual assets we care about, not some wild massive long-short ("minimum variance") portfolio.
Fama long ran OLS regressions when econometricians said to run GLS, because OLS is more robust. GMM allows you to do just that sort of thing for any kind of model -- but then correct the standard errors!
In sum, GMM is a tool, a very flexible tool. It has let us learn what the data have to say, refine models, understand where they work and where they don't, emphasize the economic intuition, and break out of the straightjacket of "reject" or "don't reject," to a much more fruitful empirical style.
Of course, it's just a tool. There is no formal definition of an "economically interesting" moment, or a "robust" prediction. Well, you have to think, and read critically.
Looking hard but achieving a remarkable simplicity when you understand it is a key trait of Lars' work. GMM really is just applying sigma/Root T (generalized) to all the hard problems of econometrics. Once you make the brilliant step of recognizing they can be mapped to a sample mean. His "conditioning information" paper with Scott Richard took me years to digest. But once you understand L2, the central theorem of asset pricing is "to every plane there is an orthogonal line." Operators in continuous time, and his new work on robust control and recursive preference shares the same elegance.
The trouble with the Nobel is that it leads people to focus on the cited work. Yes, GMM is a classic. I got here in 1985 and everyone already knew it would win a Nobel some day. But don't let that fool you, the rest of the Lars portfolio is worth studying too. We will be learning from it for years to come. Maybe this will inspire me to write up a few more of his papers. If only he would stop writing them faster than I can digest them.
Source: Becker-Friedman Institute
I won't even pretend this is unbiased. Lars is a close friend as well as one of my best colleagues at Chicago. I learned most of what I know about finance by shuttling back and forth between Lars' office and Gene Fama's, both of whom patiently explained so many things to me. But they did so in totally different terms, and understanding what each was saying in the other's language led me to whatever synthesis I have been able to achieve. If you like the book "Asset Pricing," you are seeing the result. He is also a great teacher and devoted mentor to generations of PhD students.
(This is a day late, because I thought I'd have to wait a few more years, so I didn't have a Hansen essay ready to go. Likewise Shiller, it will take a day or two. Thanks to Anonymous and Greg for reporting a typo in the equations.)
Update: I'm shutting down most comments on these posts. This week, let's congratulate the winners, and discuss issues again next week.
Labels: Academic Articles, econometrics, Economists, Finance, Nobel
Thank you for your excellent introduction to Hansen's work, and although without your approval, I enjoyed the equations as a non-economist statistician. Hansen is my favorite; whenever I meet him I try to have some small or not so small talk with him, and every time I do it, I feel his genuine care and nicety.
I think roughly two years ago they gave the price the Sims, Hansen's PhD advisor, and Sargent, Hansen's cooperator, but skipped Hansen himself, so I suppose he'd wait for another ten years or so. Therefore, when I met him at a BFI conference late September, I didn't express my wish for him to get that magic call from Sweden. Now I've missed that chance forever!
So maybe I should learn from that mistake. From now on, I'll grab every opportunity to wish you to get the call whenever I'd meet you in early autumn, for the next thirty years, or probably much shorter.
John October 15, 2013 at 6:13 PM
Can you recommend an econometrics/macro book that explains this as eloquently as you did but in more detail?
John H. Cochrane October 15, 2013 at 6:25 PM
"Asset Pricing" Princeton University Press
Wayne C. Rooney June 7, 2014 at 2:06 PM
Hahaha! Superb. I concur. The theory behind classic GMM is hands down… brilliant! Most pop techniques are nothing but special cases of it. And most eq pricing equations (think mickey mouse euler/navier-stokes like) under your favourite expected utility representation can be tested in this manner.
The Nobel prize for Professors Fama, Hansen and Shiller is hugely deserved given the many contributions they have made (you didn't even mention the Hansen and Jaganathan (1991) bound, for example). I have a question, please: Could Hansen and Sargent win a second Nobel prize each for all their (more recent) work on robust preferences, ambiguity aversion and Knighian uncertainty? Is this work sufficiently mainstream, for example?
The Next Obamacare Fiasco
Bob Shiller's Nobel
Understanding Asset Prices
Gene Fama's Nobel
Fama, Hansen, and Shiller Nobel
Friday Art Fun
Krugtron parts 2 and 3
Mulligan on Obamacare Marginal Tax Rates
Margins on Exchanges
Ferguson on Krugtron
Dupor and Li on the Missing Inflation in the New-K...
Eight young stars
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Financial Reform in 12 Minutes

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A civil rights lawyer sues Newark for a police car chase that injured an innocent third party.
Here are excerpts from an appeals court ruling in ongoing lawsuit brought by a civil rights lawyer. Lennox A. Chunkoo hired the civil rights lawyer to sue Newark, its police department, and two of its officers.
Chunkoo's civil rights lawyer alleged that Chunkoo suffered serious injuries. A vehicle in which Chunkoo was a passenger was struck by another car. A car that was being pursued by Newark police officers. The civil rights lawyer claimed that the officers engaged in an improper and unlawful chase. According to the civil rights lawyer, the chase was even in violation of police policies and procedures. The civil rights lawyer further claimed that the City was responsible for the officers' actions.
The Newark City attorney's office asked the judge to dismiss the case without a trial. Among other things, the City attorney claimed that the City (as opposed to the individual officers) was absolutely immune from being sued.
The judge concluded that it was premature to decide whether the case should be dismissed. First, it would have to be decided if there was a conflict of interest in the City attorney representing both the City and the officers. The potential for conflict of interest arose because it was possible that the City attorney might seemingly "favor" the City over the officers. That is, the City attorney might get the case dismissed against the City, and leave the officers on the hook.
A lawyer may not favor one client at another's expense. If there was in fact a conflict of interest, the officers would need to hire their own attorneys before the dismissal motion was conclusively decided.
The City attorney asserted that any conflict would be avoided by the City's commitment to pay any damages that Chunkoo might win against the officers. But the judge was not satisfied that the City attorney had the authority to make such a commitment. Only the City Council could authorize that, the judge speculated. The judge thus denied the City's motion to dismiss the case.
Newark appealed the judge's ruling. However, the appellate court dismissed the appeal as premature. The trial judge had merely raised the conflict of interest issue. But he hadn't actually decided it. Newark would need to ask the trial judge to formally rule on whether a conflict of interest existed. After that ruling, Newark could try and appeal again. Appeals court are not inclined to decide cases until the trial judge rules on all pertinent issues.
These technical points demonstrate why it is crucial for victims of improper police action to hire an experienced civil rights lawyer.


Hello there Peeps! I'm here today to share a great little Birthday card with a dimensional stack of flowers, a fun mason jar, and more layered Cricut cuts.
We'll be creating this card as part of our class tonight. I'm looking forward to a night of crafty fun with my Peeps! There are a few kits available for the 5 cards from this Variety Card class. Check out Polly's on Etsy for details.
In other news…..we've got a fabulous new header for our facebook page……Like us on facebook to get sale and shop updates and lot's of projects to get you inspired to get your craft on!!!
Hello there Paper Peeps! I'm dropping in this morning to share a card we will be making in class this week. It's one of 5 variety cards….this one is Thinking of You! We will also be creating a masculine card…good for Birthday or Father's Day, a Happy Birthday card, a Thank You card, and a Wish card good for all occasions.
For this set of cards….I got a little crazy with the die cuts and embossing….eeeek. This card has a pretty little image from one of my collage sheets that I added a sweet sentiment too and Stickled for accent. I layered it over multiple die cuts, lacy doily and beautiful blue checked patterned paper. I finished it off with a simple little coordinating bow.
This class is full…but if you'd like to make the cards too…I have kit's available in the Polly's on Etsy shop. You can view the rest of the cards and get a kit so you'll have a card ready for any occasion!
Okay…that's all for me today….I'll be catching up on a little housework since I'm stuck in the house. My car is making a funny noise and my Hubby is off camping…so it's a home day while I wait for him to get home and fix it : ) I'm wishing you all a happy and productive day with lots of time to be creative.
Hey there Paper Peeps! I'm just dropping in to share a fun and easy tutorial to whip up some great little flower, lace, and burlap scarf pins. These make great little gifts for Mother's Day too! Make up a bunch of these cuties to have on hand and you'll be ready with a thoughtful handmade gift whenever you need one. Did I mention they're easy????
Isn't that shabbylicious??? I think it would be pretty cute on a hat too!!!
I have 9 artificial fabric flowers….nothing to write home about….but I like the size and shape. I used my blending tool and Victorian Velvet Distress Ink to give them some color. Next I added some Liquid Pearls in Bisque to the outer edges. While it was still wet…I sprinkled on Martha Stewart fine clear glitter. You can also add a little Walnut or Gathered Twig Ink to antique it like I did in the finished pin. You will also need some flower stamens….these I found in the cake decorating section. I layered three flowers and added three stamens to the center of each.
Cut a circle from chipboard or other stiff backing material. I used an antique file folder since they are very thick and sturdy. Pierce a hole in the center. Trim Burlap from the wired edge and cut a scalloped shape on one side. Pinch pleat and hot glue the burlap around making sure to cover the outside edge of the circle. Add a layer of Crocheted Lace trim next pinch pleating the same as you did with the burlap. This took 2 layers of each for the size of circle and flowers I chose….you may like more or less layers.
Begin pulling the stamens from the flowers through the center hole of the chipboard circle. You'll want to add all three flowers before you secure the stamens on the back.
I just squished the stamens into slightly cooled hot glue….still hurt : ( You could also use a wet adhesive like E 6000 if you're squeamish about burning yourself. Add the pin back now. I found them at the big box craft store…very inexpensive for a fairly large package. These came with an adhesive strip….but I don't trust that adhesive….so I added hot glue before securing it to the pin.
Supplies used: Satin Swiss Dots Pink from Really Reasonable Ribbon. Cardstock from World Win, patterned paper from Hampton Arts and lot's of printed vintage images. I added Gathered Twigs Distress Ink and Stickles for accent.
Exciting News! And More Excting News!!!
Hey there Peeps! I'm popping in with another quick post as we have so much awesomeness going on today! First big news…..
We made the team woot woot woot!!!!! I am so excited to be joining this awesome group of super talented designers. I am sooo looking forward to sharing lots and lots of fabulous projects with you on the G45 blog!!!!!
More news?????? Oh yeah…bring it on!
This has been a week full of real blessings. Oh and the weather has gotten so much warmer….Spring has finally arrived 🙂 Thanks for being a big part of #goteamginny I couldn't have made it without you!!!!
Good morning Paper Peeps! I hope you are enjoying your holiday so far….I know my kiddos have enjoyed having Spring Break the week before Easter! The weather is finally showing some signs of warming up and the grass is starting to get green….now if only the leaves on the trees would come out : ) I'm dropping in this morning before I head to the shop to share a shadow box collage I created yesterday. I am cra-zy over making shadow boxes now!!!
I used French Country patterned papers from Graphic 45 as well as some beautiful clock images from A Proper Gentleman. The box itself is 10×10 and I had so much fun layering in all the fussy cut images…and of course there is like elebenty hundred foam spacers so I could build in a lot of depth.
These colors are so warm and sunny. I used the clocks and the sunflowers to anchor the bottom corners. It never ceases to amaze me how well the papers from different lines coordinate so you can mix and match them to make your projects very unique.
I added a striped scallop border to the box then layered on the border strip that came on the sheet. It suited my project better to arrange the stripes in a different order…so I trimmed them out and flipped them around so I would have the dark edge up against the stripe to keep it from being pattern overload.
I am crazy about how this clock turned out. I added some inked Dusty Attic chippies the layered on more of the sunflowers and leaves and clocks.
All along the top of the box I layered in fussy cut images with tags and more of the foam spacers. There are also lots of cricut cut scrollys that I worked in. To finish off this corner….a sweet banner hangs from Licorice Bakers Twine from Really Reasonable Ribbon.
I cut doubles on the stamp images so I could add an extra spacer and roll up the corners.


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About Rod Barton
Inquiry Into The Use of School Buses in Regional and Rural Victoria
Inquiry into the Multi Purpose Taxi Program (MPTP)
Rowville Rail
Inquiry into the Increase in Victoria's Road Toll
Inquiry into Expanding Melbourne's Free Tram Zone
Inquiry into the Commercial Passenger Vehicle Industry Act 2017 Reforms
North East Link
Suburban Rail Loop (SRL)
Stop Touting in Victoria
Isobel White
Oct 6, 2021 | Advocacy, News, Parliament
Mr BARTON (Eastern Metropolitan) (16:17): This week an incredible, special member of our taxi family passed away. Isobel White was a hardworking advocate for the taxi industry and was also a personal supporter of me and my journey to come to this place. Isobel and her husband, Stan, created a magazine called Taxi Talk 66 years ago. Their daughter, Toni, continues their legacy to this day. The magazine is now called Drive Now, which has spread across the country. Isobel and Stan were fortunate enough to have their diamond anniversary back in March: 60 years of marriage, and what an achievement that is. She was a mad Collingwood supporter and was loved by all who knew her.
I would like to extend my condolences to her daughter, Toni, her son-in-law, Mark, and the grandkids. She will be dearly missed. In her lifetime Isobel saw a once-thriving industry that supported our families become yet another victim of the gig economy. We are taxi drivers, hire car drivers and rideshare drivers, and we are all fighting for basic workers rights and a smaller piece of the pie every day. I will end with this: it is people like Isobel who give me the reason to come to this place and fight for what is fair. I will continue to do just that. And one last time, Isobel: go those Pies.
Who is in the Industry?
Mr BARTON (Eastern Metropolitan) (17:26): (1696) My adjournment is for Minister Carroll in the other place. Commercial Passenger Vehicles Victoria, the CPVV, are the regulator for the taxi, rideshare and hire car industry. The CPVV list one of their key functions as...
Proposed Aged-Care Facility – Ferntree Gully
My constituency question today is for the Minister for Planning. Last week I met with residents of Ferntree Gully who are deeply concerned about a proposed aged-care facility to be built on St Elmo Avenue, a small no through road surrounded by nature reserves and...
Equal Opportunity (Religious Exceptions) Amendment Bill 2021
I also rise to speak on the Equal Opportunity (Religious Exceptions) Amendment Bill 2021, which will strengthen Victoria's anti-discrimination legislation. I will be supporting this bill today, and I do not think that is any surprise. Everyone is entitled to a safe...
Suite 1, 600 Doncaster Road, Doncaster VIC 3108
E-mail: rod.barton@parliament.vic.gov.au
CONNECT WITH ROD
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Argentina VP demands removal of judge in assassination attempt probe
Thursday, November 10, 2022 11:16 EST 1 mins read
Argentina Vice President Cristina Kirchner on Thursday demanded the reclusion of a judge overseeing the investigation into an alleged attempt to murder her.. The former president, 69, accused judge Maria Eugenia Capuchetti of failing to investigate her attackers' political connections.
Argentina Vice President Cristina Kirchner on Thursday demanded the reclusion of a judge overseeing the investigation into an alleged attempt to murder her.
The former president, 69, accused judge Maria Eugenia Capuchetti of failing to investigate her attackers' political connections.
Kirchner survived the assassination attempt on September 1 as she mingled with supporters outside her home in Buenos Aires when the gun brandished by her alleged assailant failed to fire.
She posted on Twitter stating she had asked her lawyers to push for the removal of Capuchetti. In a video accompanying the post, a woman's voice accuses the judge of failing to interview an opposition politician the video attempts to link to the presumed assassination attempt.
"It is clear that the 'judicial party' does not want Cristina as a victim. It wants her imprisoned or dead," said the narrator.
In the video, the narrator claims that a witness overheard legislator Gerardo Milman making a comment that could presumably link him to an assassination plot two days before the attack.
Shortly after the failed attack, Kirchner's lawyer Gregorio Dalbon claimed the attacker could not have acted alone and others must have been involved in the plot.
Four people have been charged with involvement in the attack.
The alleged assailant, Fernando Sabag Montiel, 35, was arrested at the scene as he was detained by Kirchner supporters who had come to her home as she went on trial for alleged corruption while she was president.
Montiel's girlfriend Brenda Uliarte, 23, was taken into custody three days later.
Gabriel Carrizo, 27, and Agustina Diaz, 21, were arrested later and charged with complicity in the attack.
However, Diaz has since been released after an appeals court said there was a lack of evidence to indict her.
Kirchner is among 13 people accused of fraud and corruption that occurred during her two terms as president as well as her late husband Nestor's term.
The ongoing case involves bribes alleged to have been paid in her Patagonian political stronghold.
Kirchner, who is also implicated in several other corruption investigations, has always claimed to be the victim of political persecution.
Prosecutors have requested that she be jailed for 12 years and banned from politics for life.
A verdict is due at the end of the year.
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Tags: Argentina politics crime Kirchner
Couple formally charged in Argentine VP assassination attempt
Attacker and girlfriend 'planned' attempted hit on Argentine VP
Wed, Sep 7, 2022
Police in Argentina arrest companion of Kirchner attacker: media
Mon, Sep 5, 2022


Offering spacious studio, one, two and three-bedroom residences and a superb Packard's Corner location that's convenient to the MBTA Green Line and the Boston University campus. Commonwealth Gardens provides an ideal living opportunity for students, professionals, and families alike in the Boston University neighborhood. Each unit features a private porch, central air conditioning, 1.5 bathrooms and a modern kitchen. Additional building amenities include on-site laundry facilities and 24-hour emergency maintenance.
Shop, dine and play! Experience all that Commonwealth Gardens has to offer, just steps from your door.


This week is Deaf Awareness Week, which aims to raise awareness of hearing loss in the UK and its impact on people's lives.
Hearing loss is common and can affect people of any age. About 16% of adults in the UK have some degree of hearing loss. It is thought that half the general population above the age of 75 have some hearing loss. Children are the next most common group to be affected, usually due to fluid or infection in the middle ear but also due to congenital problems or viral illness during early childhood. Hearing loss can interfere with normal communication with others on a daily basis.
It's not always easy to tell if you're losing your hearing. The NHS has a list of symptoms and treatments. If you are unsure about your symptoms you should visit your GP.
If you are working with someone who has hearing loss there are a wide range of websites offering support and advice on the importance of deaf awareness, the different experiences of deafness and hearing loss and how it affects individuals.
Heather Mawson, Head of Pensions, is currently making a difference as a volunteer puppy socialiser for Hearing Dogs. Her family are currently sharing their home with Onyx, who is destined one day to support a person with hearing loss.


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Phill Dalhausser, a właściwie Phillip Peter Dalhausser (ur. 26 stycznia 1980 w Baden w Szwajcarii) – amerykański siatkarz plażowy. Mistrz Olimpijski z Pekinu, gdzie w 2008 r. występował w parze z Toddem Rogersem.

Sukcesy
 Mistrzostwa Świata:
  2007
  2009

Przypisy

Amerykańscy siatkarze plażowi
Medaliści Letnich Igrzysk Olimpijskich 2008
Urodzeni w 1980
Ludzie urodzeni w Baden (Szwajcaria)

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Aviculture: The raising, keeping, and care of birds. Our comprehensive bird diets have been the backbone of successful bird-keeping since 1937. Cage birds are completely in the charge of bird-keepers and their health and well-being is mirrored exactly in what they are fed. If they are to lead healthy lives, it is a duty to give them the best. And the best is Haith's. All seeds supplied by Haith's are SUPERCLEAN™ as dust is harmful to a bird's respiratory system.
Make bait for less - save money, fish more often and know what's going into your bait when using our high-quality, trusted ingredients.
You can probably tell from the photo below that the Haith's Cage & Aviary Showteam were happy to receive third place for best trade stand from Budgerigar Society President, Charlie Bowman.
If you took part in our Bird Seed Hamper draw, thank you for taking the time to complete the entry form – the winners are Mr Mark Rodgers from Ireland and Mr D Vandepeer from Ashford. All those who entered will be receiving something special through the post this week... The hamper was drawn by the legend that is Geoff Capes. Thank you, Geoff.
Our Budgie Tonic Seed was the most popular product on the Haith's stand and we enjoyed hearing how excited budgies become when fresh bags of the tonic mix are opened-up in the birdroom. Breeders have been using our Budgie Tonic for many years. It's often copied – but never equalled!
We gave away hundreds of free BRAVO! Budgie Seed samples and received excellent feedback; confirming that BRAVO! is fast becoming the staple diet of budgie enthusiasts across the country.
This is a key moment in the bird-keeping calendar as we're fast approaching the breeding season. We're here to help you bring your birds into breeding condition with our SuperClean bird diets. SuperClean means super safe and nutritious and we (the showteam) encourage you – if you haven't already – to give dusty seed the boot and switch to seed that's been formulated and cleaned by specialists. If you're asking yourself if there's a difference between clean and superclean – please take a moment to read www.haiths.com/cage-and-aviary-bird-seed/our-goal-the-cleanest-bird-food-in-the-world-/ as it could save your birds and improve your bird-keeping results.
One final thing and it's one of the most important: if you belong to a cage bird society (CBS) we want to hear from you and your colleagues. Why? Because we'd like to advertise your forthcoming show and show results on our website and we may even feature you on the back of The Haith's Times (our quarterly newsletter). As a member of our CBS, we'll support you with rosettes and seed vouchers, too. Please contact jenny.cocking@haiths.com for more information.
Here's a selection of our favourite photos from the BS Show... see you all next year!
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BACHELOR OF ARTS IN POLITICAL SCIENCE WITH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Being a determinant of values and the authoritative allocation of resources in an enduring system, politics plays a fundamental role in the development of any society. Political science, as the study of politics, is therefore significant to the understanding of the dynamics of the development process. In this regard, the programme offers courses which together with other approved courses lead to the award of Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with Information Technology (IT).
The objectives are to:-
equip students with knowledge and skills in political science;
enable students acquire capabilities to carry out research;
impart skills that can enable graduates to effectively participate in socio-economic and political development.
Applicants to be admitted into the degree programme must satisfy the minimum entry requirements for admission to the University and the School.
PROGRAMME DURATION
The duration of the programme shall normally be four academic years.
DEGREE STRUCTURE
The programme offers courses within the degree structure spelt out by the University and the School of Development and Strategic Studies. Consequently in the first two years students shall be required to take courses from this programme and any other two programmes within the School as directed from year to year. In the last two years students shall take courses from Political Science programme only.
The programme offers courses in terms of units as defined by the University.
There are CORE, ELECTIVE and REQUIRED courses. Core courses are mandatory, while elective courses may be chosen by students from an approved list of courses in fulfilling the full-time load requirement. Required courses are provided by the other departments within and outside the School.
The normal full-time load for one academic year shall be at least 42 units but not more than 48 units.
The programme shall be of the 3.3.1.1 pattern of which the student shall be required to register in the School's three programmes in the first two years, and in one programme (Political Science) in the last two years. In each of the first two years, a student shall take 12 units from this programme in addition to the indicated Information Technology courses. In each of the last two years, a student shall take a minimum of 42 units including Information Technology courses.
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About Miracle NetworkRyan Johnson2020-01-09T10:17:50+00:00
Miracle Network
The Miracle Network is a UK-Registered Charity (reg. number 1108852), acting as a resource organisation for all things related to A Course in Miracles in the UK.
We offer a free support, contact and information service for 3,500 students of A Course in Miracles, mainly in the United Kingdom, although the Network also has some members overseas.
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Join our mailing list and receive a free ACIM Study Guide :
The Miracle Network publishes a bi-monthly magazine, 'Miracle Worker' which contains news, thought-provoking and inspiring articles, an events guide (Course-related events all over the UK) and listings of ACIM study and support groups. See Miracle Worker.
We organise our own Course-related talks, workshops and classes, at both local and national level, as well as a bi-annual conference (see Events). The Miracle Cafe runs on the last Tuesday evening of the month in Neal's Yard, Covent Garden.
We provide a mail-order service on Course-related books, CDs and computer programs. Many of these items are difficult or impossible to obtain in the shops in the UK, so try us first! See shop.
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ATP roundup: Andy Murray wins opener in Australian Open tune-up
Three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray continued his tune-up for the Australian Open Tuesday, defeating Norway's Viktor Durasovic 6-3, 6-1 in the opening round at the Sydney Tennis Classic.
It was the first win in three years in Australia for Murray, who has battled hip injuries in recent years. The 34-year-old Brit lost to Facundo Bagnis last week in Melbourne in his season opener. A five-time Australian Open finalist, Murray received a wild-card entry into the Grand Slam event.
American Maxime Cressy continued his strong start to 2022 with a 6-3, 7-5 defeat of Adrian Mannarino of France. Cressy lost to Rafael Nadal on Sunday in the final of the Melbourne Summer Set.
Other winners included No. 6 seed Dusan Lajovic and fellow Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic, American Denis Kudla and Spaniard Pedro Martinez.
Adelaide International 2
Soonwoo Kwon of South Korea battled back from match point to oust No. 5 seed Lloyd Harris of South Africa 5-7, 7-5, 6-4 in Adelaide, Australia.
In other action, No. 8 seed Marton Fucsovics of Hungary topped Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands 6-3, 7-6 (4) in one hour, 53 minutes. Next up for him is French qualifier Corentin Moutet, who fended off seven of eight break points in his 6-2, 6-4 defeat of Jan-Lennard Struff of Germany.
Australian wild card Thanasi Kokkinakis defeated Benoit Paire of France 6-4, 6-0 in 70 minutes, losing just two service points along the way, and next will meet No. 2 seed John Isner. Italian Gianluca Mager beat Egor Gerasimov of Belarus 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 and will face No. 3 seed Karen Khachanov of Russia in the next round.


Benn Woods, who is the letting agent at Ray White Commercial which is looking after many of the empty shop units in Wynnum Central, let us know recently that a new late night opening cafe/restaurant was scheduled to open in the old FSG cafe.
It's really great to see new experienced foodies coming into the area, especially as they'll be focusing on a strong lunch/dinner offering.
I can't wait to head down to "Mates" for a steak and a couple bevies.
Best of luck with the new venture Shivam!
SO much info this week, all great news, Wynnum is happening !


text:
Pieter Antonisz. van Groenewegen (Delft, circa 1600 - Den Haag, 1658), was een Nederlands kunstschilder. Hij behoorde tot de Italianisanten en schilderde vooral landschappen.

Leven en werk
Van Groenewegen vertrok in 1615 als jongeling naar Italië en voegde zich daar bij zijn vriend Leonard Bramer. Hij woonde lange tijd in het huis Bocca de Leone te Rome en werd er lid van het kunstenaarsgenootschap de Bentvueghels, waar hij de bijnaam "Leeuw" kreeg. Hij schilderde vooral mediterrane landschappen met kleine figuren, die hij vaak door anderen liet toevoegen. Hij werd beïnvloed door Jacob Pynas en Bartholomeus Breenbergh.

Terug in Nederland vestigde hij zich weer in Delft, waar hij in 1626 lid werd van het Lukasgilde. Hij was een vermogend man. Op 2 augustus trouwde hij met Jannetje Jacobsdr. Ackersloot. Groenewegen huurde op 28 december 1633 het huis 'Het Gouden Hoofd' aan de westzijde van de Hippolytusbuurt bij de Vismarkt. In 1643 verhuisde hij naar Den Haag. De vader van Johannes Vermeer verhandelde zijn werken. In de laatste jaren van zijn leven werkte hij in Den Haag. Hij werd daar in 1657 lid van de Confrerie Pictura. Een jaar later kwam hij aldaar te overlijden.

Hoewel zijn werk in oude inventarissen regelmatig voorkomen is zijn overgeleverde oeuvre gering.
Werk van Van Groenewegen bevindt zich in de collecties van onder andere het Rijksmuseum Amsterdam en de Harvard Art Museums.

Externe links
 Van Groenewegen op de website van de RKD
 Romeins landschap in het Rijksmuseum
 Korte biografische informatie

Nederlands kunstschilder


IC Sockets Market studies the global IC Sockets market status and forecast, categorizes the global IC Sockets market size (value & volume) by manufacturers, type, application, and region. IC Sockets Market focuses on the top manufacturers in United States, Europe, China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan and other regions.
Win Way Technology Co., Ltd.
Focuses on the key IC Sockets manufacturers, to study the capacity, production, value, market share and development plans in future.
Regional and country-level analysis of the IC Sockets market, by end-use.
7.3 Chupond Precision Co., Ltd.
7.11 Plastronics Socket Company, Inc.
7.14 Win Way Technology Co., Ltd.
7.15 Yamaichi Electronics Co., Ltd.
Browse 154 market data Tables and Figures spread through 127 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Global IC Sockets Market Research Report 2018"
The fundamental overview of Prosthetic sockets market, revenue statistics, market definition, product scope, industry chain structure and market share are analyzed in this report. Furthermore, the industry policies, definitions, product classification, a variety of applications, production volume, demand and supply statistics of Prosthetic sockets.
The fundamental overview of TV Sockets market, revenue statistics, market definition, product scope, industry chain structure and market share are analyzed in this report. Furthermore, the industry policies, definitions, product classification, a variety of applications, production volume, demand and supply statistics of TV Sockets.
The fundamental overview of Forked Collar Sockets market, revenue statistics, market definition, product scope, industry chain structure and market share are analyzed in this report. Furthermore, the industry policies, definitions, product classification, a variety of applications, production volume, demand and supply statistics of Forked Collar Sockets.
The fundamental overview of Collar Sockets market, revenue statistics, market definition, product scope, industry chain structure and market share are analyzed in this report. Furthermore, the industry policies, definitions, product classification, a variety of applications, production volume, demand and supply statistics of Collar Sockets.


A robust economic growth, increasing demand for air travel and growth of cargo market support the forecast.
Boeing Company on Monday said the Indian civil aviation sector would require 856 new commercial jet airplanes worth over $72 billion over the next 20 years.
"Boeing forecasts a long term requirement for increased passenger traffic in which airlines significantly add frequencies with smaller aircraft to meet demands," Boeing Commercial Airplanes Senior Vice President Sales (South and Southeast Asia) Dinesh Keskar said.
"It also forecasts a considerable increase in the air freight market that will need to support the country's exports, which are growing at an estimated 5-6 per cent a year for the next 20 years," he added.
The strong forecast is supported in part by a robust economic growth, an increasing demand for point to point domestic and international air travel and the growth of the India based cargo market, the CMO said.