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You are here: Home / A-Blog / The Turmoil Following the Firing of FBI Director Comey is a Coup D'état Against President Trump
The Turmoil Following the Firing of FBI Director Comey is a Coup D'état Against President Trump
May 21, 2017 by Frank de Varona - Bear Witness Central
James B. Comey served as the seventh Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from September 4, 2013 until his dismissal on May 9, 2017 by President Donald J. Trump.
The former FBI Director Comey said shortly after his dismissal on May 9, 2017 that the president can fire an FBI director for reasons or no reasons at all. It appeared that Comey had accepted the termination of his employment and that he was ready to move on with his life. Nothing could be further from the truth. This writer believes that Comey began to retaliate immediately against the president in revenge for his dismissal.
On May 16, 2017, according to two individuals very close to Comey, and most likely directed by the former FBI director, went to the "Destroy Trump" newspaper the New York Times with the allegation that Comey had written in a memorandum shared by others at the FBI that President Donald Trump had asked him to back off from the investigation of former National Security Advisor General Michael Flynn. Obstruction of justice is an impeachable offense. The meeting at the White House occurred shortly after General Flynn was forced to resign in February 2017. This information was leaked to the New York Times, the anti-Trump newspaper that is the voice for the Council of Foreign Relations, in order to damage seriously the president. The White House denied the account as described by those close to Comey.
This alleged conversation between the president and the FBI director, which was reported in the memorandum written by Comey, created turmoil in Congress and in the media. Certainly, this situation made Comey very pleased!
These memos written by Comey contradicted his recent sworn testimony at the Senate where he stated that at no time he had been asked to stop the Russian investigation. It also contradicted the sworn testimony given last week by Comey's friend, Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe. He stated to Congress that there has been no attempt to interfere with the FBI's Russia probe. Thus, if Comey's memos are valid, then Comey and McCabe lied to Congress. And lying to Congress is a felony known as perjury.
There is no question in this writer's mind that this new leak to the New York Times is a continuation of the ongoing coup d'état against President Trump by the so-called "Deep State." There are many officials who are embedded in the federal government, including intelligence agencies, who were and continue to be actively working to undermine and, if possible, impeach President Donald J. Trump.
According to the story published by the New York Times regarding the existence of the Comey's memos, the former FBI director had spread word among the high officials of the FBI of his conversation with the president. Andrew McCabe is a close collaborator and an ally of James Comey. The corrupt anti-Trump mainstream media did not bring up this contradiction between the testimony of both Comey and McCabe to Congress and the memos leaked to the New York Times in an effort to undermine and destroy the credibility of President Trump.
More importantly, if the former FBI Director James Comey believed that the president was attempting to obstruct justice, he had the legal obligation to report it immediately to the Justice Department. Comey should have resigned immediately and told the media and the American people why he did it. Obviously, the former FBI director did not consider the president's statements as obstruction of justice.
Democrats in Congress, some of whom have asked for impeachment from the very beginning of the Trump presidency, continued to demand that a special prosecutor be appointed with the hope of destroying the presidency of Donald J. Trump. The Democrats did not care if it hurt the national security or the economy of America.
On May 18, 2017, the Wall Street Journal wrote an editorial that stated the following:
"Another possibility is that Mr. Comey viewed the notes as a form of political insurance that could be useful in a future controversy. By not resigning but quietly spreading word among colleagues, Mr. Comey was laying down evidence that he could use to protect his job or retaliate if Mr. Trump did fire him. The leak of Mr. Comey notes suggests that he or his allies are now calling on that insurance."
"Such behavior fits Mr. Comey's habit over the years of putting his personal political standing above all other priorities. And it echoes uncomfortably of the way J. Edgar Hoover used information he collected to protect himself against presidential accountability… After Mr. Comey's performance in 2016, Mr. Trump should also have known he needed to name a new FBI director in January, as some of us advised. History might have been different. The tragedy is that all of this has put the larger Trump reform agenda in jeopardy. Stocks took a beating on May 17, 2017 as investors assessed the possibility that Mr. Trump has sabotaged his own challenge to the Washington status quo. If Mr. Comey is out for revenge for his belated dismissal, Mr. Trump best defense is to get the facts out as quickly as possible."
President Donald Trump met in the White House with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian ambassador to the United States Sergei Kislyak. There were leaks following this meeting to the anti-Trump newspapers.
This situation followed an incident on May 15, 2017, when the Trump administration confronted another damaging leak regarding the president meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian ambassador to the United States Sergei Kislyak. The president was accused of disclosing sensitive intelligence information to the Russian officials. However, the president has the right to declassify any information and share it with officials from other countries. Incredibly, someone present at that meeting called the CIA and the NSA and one or more of intelligence officials contacted the "Destroy Trump" newspapers. It is very difficult for Donald Trump to govern the United States with these constant leaks to the corrupt media.
On May 19, 2017, the anti-Trump newspaper the New York Times reported that President Donald Trump told the Russian officials that firing "nut job" FBI director James Comey relieved "great pressure" on him. The Times reported that President Trump said the following: "I just fired the head of the FBI. He was crazy, a real nut job. I face great pressure because of Russia. That's taken off. The Times said that this information came from notes taken from that meeting. Obviously if this information is true, President Trump has traitors working inside the White House who are spying on him. If it is not true, then is another effort of the New York Times, which is the voice of the Council of Foreign Relations, to try to impeach the president. However, it could well be fake news since this anti-Trump New York newspaper has printed lies regarding President Trump before.
It was very disturbing how for the third time the private conversations of the president at the White House with head of nations and other foreign officials are immediately leaked to the "Destroy Trump" newspapers. Previously, the president's private conversations with the President of Mexico and the Prime Minister of Australia were leaked to the "Destroy Trump" newspapers. It is obvious, as stated earlier, that the so-called "Deep State" officials who are embedded in the White House and the federal government including intelligence agencies are trying to undermine and, if possible, impeach or force President Trump to resign.
General Flynn was forced to resign after it was revealed he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about the nature and content of his communications with the Russian ambassador to the United States, Sergey Kislyak. The unmasking Flynn more than likely at the request of a high official of Obama White House, perhaps National Security Adviser Susan Rice, by someone in the intelligence agencies is a crime. The former director of the FBI Comey never investigated this crime.
Former Defense Intelligence Agency Director and retired General Michael Flynn served as national security advisor from January 20 to February 13, 2017.
General Flynn is in legal jeopardy as he did not notify the Pentagon that he was working as a lobbyist on behalf of the government of Turkey. Additionally, General Flynn should not have accepted funds from Russia to attend in Moscow a ceremony presided by Vladimir Putin celebrating the 10th anniversary of Russia Today television, which is considered to be a KGB operation.
On May 17, 2017, Del Quentin Wilber and Aruna Viswanatha wrote an article titled "Trump Asked Comey to Drop Flynn Investigation, According to Memo Written by Former FBI Director" which was published in the Wall Street Journal. The reporters explained that two individuals stated that they had seen a memorandum written by FBI Director Comey that documented his meeting with President Trump. It was reported that during this meeting the president told Comey, "I hope you can let this go" referring to any investigation of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn
These two individuals requested anonymity. One of them said that there are "a number of encounters with the president that concerned him, and he wrote very detailed memos about those instances."
Wilber and Viswanatha pointed out the following: "President Donald Trump's provocative tweets about former FBI Director James Comey and the ongoing Russia investigation are drawing more attention to a probe that continues to disrupt the Trump administration… Because Mr. Comey was overseeing an FBI investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, including any possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russian officials, the dismissal attracted criticism and questions from lawmakers of both parties."
The White House issued the following statement: "While the president has repeatedly expressed his view that General Flynn is a decent man who served and protected our country, the president has never asked Mr. Comey or anyone else to end any investigation, including any investigation involving General Flynn. The president has the utmost respect for our law enforcement agencies, and all investigations. This is not a truthful or accurate portrayal of the conversation between the president and Mr. Comey."
President Donald J. Trump shakes hands with then-director of the FBI, James Comey, during a January 22, 2017 inaugural event for law enforcement officials at the White House. The president should have fired Comey on his first day in office.
The reporters pointed out that the disclosure of the Comey memo immediately prompted demands from Congress for more information, as members of Congress from both political parties appeared taken aback by the reports. Senator Susan Collins (Republican from Maine and a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee) said "I'm floored by that." Senator Collins explained that she was hearing about it for the first time and wanted to reserve judgment until she learned more. "There's so much floating around—some of it's true, some of it isn't," Senator Collins said. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (Republican from Iowa) stated that if such a memo existed, it would be troubling. "I'd have concerns about it, but I don't know anything about it," he said.
The reporters wrote that Senator Grassley and other Republicans said they thought the memo would conflict with statements made last week by Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, who said in testimony before Congress that the White House had not interfered with any investigation. Senator Dianne Feinstein (Democrat from California and a member of the Judiciary Committee) expressed "stark surprise and deep concern," saying she believed the committee should "hold full hearings on this immediately."
The reporters said that the FBI is investigating Flynn for the conversations he had with the Russian diplomat as well as and his financial dealings with Russia and Turkey. It is not clear if President Donald J. Trump was aware of the exact nature of the investigation of Flynn. Richard Painter, a chief ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration, said it would be obstruction of justice for the president to explicitly or implicitly threaten to fire the FBI director if he did not drop the investigation of Mr. Flynn. However, "if all he does is express his view that it's an investigation he hopes will end that in and of itself would not be obstruction of justice," Painter said.
A special counsel is named to investigate the Russian involvement in the presidential election as well as Comey's dismissal and allegations of obstruction of justice
Robert S. Mueller III became the sixth Director of the FBI. He served for 12 years, from September 4, 2001 to September 4, 2013.
On May 17, 2017, Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein appointed Robert S. Mueller to serve as special counsel to oversee the investigation into Russian involvement in the 2016 presidential elections. He will also investigate any possible ties between Russia and the Donald Trump campaign as well as the conversation that took place between the president and James Comey. Mueller has pretty much a free hand in where to lead his investigation.
This writer believes that the appointment of Robert S. Mueller as a special counsel was serious mistake. Rosenstein gave in to the demands of the Democrats in Congress after previously stating that it was not necessary to name a special counsel since the FBI could conduct the investigation. Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein has worked together with Mueller as well as with Comey in the past.
Former FBI Director Mueller is a long-time colleague and close friend of James Comey. The two individuals have worked together for several years during the administration of President George W. Bush. They have also socialized together for many years. Can we expect the former FBI Director Mueller to be objective in his investigation of a close friend? How likely is the former FBI Director Mueller to evaluate objectively the president who abruptly fired his close friend James Comey? Is the former FBI Director Mueller prepared to indict some of his former employees at the FBI if they were found to have leaked classified information? Is the former FBI Director Mueller a part of the so-called swamp? Will the former FBI Director Mueller investigate former president Obama and members of administration for illegally monitoring Donald J Trump and members of his team? This writer hopes that Robert S. Mueller will be objective but is not sure that he will be able to do it.
On May 17, 2017, Rebecca R. Ruiz wrote an article titled "Robert Mueller, Former FBI Director, Named Special Counsel for Russia Investigation" which was published in the New York Times. The reporter explained that on May 17, 2017 Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein announced that he had appointed former FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III to serve as a special counsel to oversee its investigation into Russian meddling in the election. Ruiz said that the appointment of former FBI Director Mueller "dramatically raises the stakes for President Trump in the multiple investigations into his campaign's ties to the Russians."
The reporter pointed out that it follows a series of developments that have roiled Washington, D.C., including President Trump's abrupt dismissal of the FBI Director, James B. Comey, and the news that the president had asked Comey to drop the FBI's investigation into his former national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn. As stated earlier, the White House issued a statement denying that the conversation took placed.
Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein stated the following: "I determined that it is in the public interest for me to exercise my authorities and appoint a special counsel to assume responsibility for this matter. My decision is not a finding that crimes have been committed or that any prosecution is warranted. I have made no such determination." While as special counsel Robert S. Mueller would remain ultimately answerable to Rod Rosenstein — and by extension, the president — he would have greater autonomy to run an investigation than a United States attorney.
Reaction in Congress regarding the appointment of a special counsel
On May 18, 2017, Del Quentin Wilber and Aruna Viswanatha wrote an article titled "Ex-FBI Chief to Lead Russia Probe" which was published in the Wall Street Journal. The reporters explained that the initial reaction from Congress to former FBI Director Robert S. Mueller's appointment was largely positive. Some Republicans viewed the appointment with relief. Congressman Ryan Costello (Republican from Pennsylvania) stated that the appointment removes pressure from Congress since legislators have been asked daily for their thoughts on how the investigation should be handled. "It takes it off the table for the time being," Congressman Costello said. But not everyone was on board. "I don't see the need for one," said Congressman Peter King (Republican from New York). "To me, it's a bad precedent to set, if any time there's an investigation of an administration, you have to have a special counsel. These guys go on forever."
Senator Chuck Schumer (Democrat from New York and Senate Minority Leader) said the following: "Former Director Mueller is exactly the right kind of individual for this job. I now have significantly greater confidence that the investigation will follow the facts wherever they lead."
Some Democrats, such as Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (Democrat of California and the House Minority Democratic leader), said that the Democrats still wanted an independent outside commission to investigate because the Trump administration still would have some influence over Mr. Mueller.
"A special prosecutor is the first step, but it cannot be the last," Mrs. Pelosi said. "Director Mueller will still be in the chain of command under the Trump-appointed leadership of the Justice Department. He cannot take the place of a truly independent, outside commission that is completely free from the Trump administration's meddling."
Communist Tom Perez, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, has also demanded an independent outside commission. Perez, as well as many Democrats in Congress, wants to impeach President Donald J. Trump. Perez wants to harass as much as possible the president so he will not succeed in implementing his agenda to make America great and to make America safe again.
Republican Senator John McCain from Arizona has shown that he despises President Trump.
Senator John McCain (Republican from Arizona) stated on May 16, 2017 that allegations against President Trump's administration have reached a "Watergate size and scale." Senator McCain, who is a frequent critic of President Trump, made the comment at an International Republican Institute panel in Washington, D.C. These remarks were a complete exaggeration.
The firing of the FBI Director James B. Comey
President Donald J. Trump fired FBI Director James B. Comey on May 9, 2017. The president stated that Comey had lost the public's trust. In his letter to the FBI Director, President Trump said, "While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur with the judgment of the Department of Justice that you are not able to effectively lead the bureau."
President Trump stated that he was acting on the advice of both Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. Several days later, the president said that he was considering firing the FBI director before he received the reports from the Justice Department. The White House said the search for a replacement has started.
Attorney General Sessions wrote that "a fresh start" was needed in order for the Justice Department to "reaffirm its commitment to long-standing principles that ensure the integrity and fairness of federal investigations and prosecutions." Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein wrote in a memo to Attorney General the following: "I cannot defend the director's handling of the conclusion of the investigation of Secretary Clinton's emails, and I do not understand his refusal to accept the nearly universal judgment that he was mistaken. Almost everyone agrees that the director made serious mistakes; it is one of the few issues that unite people of diverse perspectives."
Senator Jeff Sessions was confirmed as Attorney General on February 8, 2017 with a 52–47 vote in the Senate.
In the meantime, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Deputy Director Andrew McCabe will act as acting director. However, due to the fact that Andrew McCabe's wife Jill received $675,000 from the Democratic Governor of Virginia Terry McAuliffe, a great friend of the Clintons, when she ran unsuccessfully in 2015 for the state senate of Virginia, he could be replaced as acting director at any time. Several FBI officials and others are being interviewed for the position, including McCabe.
Rod Rosenstein is the Deputy Attorney General of the Justice Department. Prior to his current appointment, he served as United States Attorney for the District of Maryland.
President Donald J. Trump nominated Rod Rosenstein on January 13, 2017. Rosenstein was confirmed by the Senate on April 25, 2017. At the time of his confirmation as Deputy Attorney General, Rod Rosenstein was the nation's longest-serving United States attorney.
The Democrats in Congress renewed their request for the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate any ties between the Trump campaign officials and Russia. Many Democrats in Congress had asked for several months for the firing of the FBI director. Many Democrats publicly blamed the FBI director for the defeat of Hillary Clinton in the presidential election, with some demanding that President Obama fire him before the election. However, now that President Trump did what they wanted, they are criticizing him and some even asking for his impeachment. It shows clearly that many Democrats in Congress are a bunch of hypocrites!
Senator Ron Wyden (Democrat from Oregon) stated the following: "There can be no question that a fully independent special counsel must be appointed to lead this investigation. At this point, no one in Trump's chain of command can be trusted to carry out an impartial investigation." Even though Senator Wyden has been a longtime critic of FBI Director Comey, he now called the firing outrageous.
The radical Senator Tim Kaine (Democrat from Virginia and vice presidential running mate of Hillary Clinton) called the firing "the Tuesday night massacre," recalling when President Richard Nixon's "Saturday Night Massacre" ouster of the attorney general, the deputy attorney general, and the special prosecutor investigating who were Watergate. Of course, this is an exaggeration.
In letters to the president, Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said James Comey had lost their backing. Rod Rosenstein blamed the handling of the Clinton probe. He said that the FBI director Comey was "wrong to usurp" Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch's authority when he took it upon himself to hold a press conference in July of 2016 to announce that the FBI would not recommend criminal charges against Hillary Clinton.
The FBI director thadhadhadhadhadestified before Congress last had testified before Congress that he took the unusual step because he believed that a June 2016 airport tarmac meeting between Attorney General Lynch and former President Bill Clinton had undermined the Justice Department's credibility to independently investigate the case. Attorney General Sessions wrote in his memo that "a fresh start" was needed in order for the Justice Department to "reaffirm its commitment to long-standing principles that ensure the integrity and fairness of federal investigations and prosecutions."
Republican Senator Richard Burr from North Carolina is the chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. He announced that former FBI director James Comey will testify before his committee.
Some Republican members of Congress criticized the dismissal of the FBI director. Senator Richard Burr (Republican from North Carolina and chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence) said he was "troubled by the timing and reasoning" of the decision. He said it confuses the committee's investigation into Russia, which was relying heavily on information developed by the FBI. However, other Republicans in Congress defended President Trump and said he was within his rights to dismiss the FBI director.
Republican Senator Chuck Grassley from Iowa is the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman.
Senator Chuck Grassley (Republican from Iowa and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman) indicated that "the effectiveness of the FBI depends upon the public trust and confidence. Unfortunately, this has clearly been lost." Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley said FBI Director Comey had been slow to provide his panel with answers. Only one other FBI director has been fired in the agency's history. This person was William S. Sessions, a President Ronald Reagan appointee, who was fired by President Clinton in 1993 over alleged ethics violations.
On May 10, 2017, Charles Hurt wrote an article titled "For Comey, a creature of the swamp, a deserved dunking" which was published by the Washington Times. The reporter wrote that for almost a year now, the only issue everyone in Washington could agree upon was that now-former FBI Director Jim Comey "was an overreaching, underperforming dolt." The FBI director thought of himself to be attorney general after he had lost all confidence in Loretta Lynch, the actual attorney general. Now that President Trump fired the FBI director, according to the reporter, "All the swamp creatures begin snapping and writhing and yowling like angry cats in the dark. This is what happens if you mess with the swamp."
Hurt pointed out that in July 2016, FBI Director James Comey delivered in the middle of the presidential campaign the most damning non-indictment of Hillary Clinton in the history of criminal justice. He said, "After listing a long rap sheet of inexcusable, reckless and conspiratorial handling of state secrets over a purposely concealed home email server — designed specifically to shield Hillary Clinton from public scrutiny — the FBI director jarringly announced that he was recommending that no charges would be forthcoming." Comey said that at the time that "Although there is evidence of potential violations of the statutes regarding the handling of classified information, our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case." Of course, this was not true!
James Comey's friends at the FBI, most likely gave Comey memos to the "Destroy Trump" New York Times. This was done as part of Comey's revenge for his dismissal to hurt President Trump and, if possible, to impeach him. This is nothing more than a coup d' etat directed by the leaders of the "Deep State" against the duly elected President Trump. It contradicted James Comey's sworn testimony in Congress as well as the sworn testimony of the Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, saying that no one at any time has ever asked them to stop the FBI investigation.
Hurt explained that if you are a former first lady, who is about to be the next president and whose husband is a former president who had just met privately on a plane on a tarmac, then you will not be charged. However, if you are a mere citizen or public employee with no such influence, you are gambling with your life and your career. Hillary Clinton and many Democrats blamed Comey for her defeat. She said recently that "If the election had been on October 27, I would be your president," referring to one of Comey's final interferences in the campaign.
On May 11, 2017, Sandy Fitzgerald wrote in Newsmax that President Donald Trump said he had planned to fire FBI Director James Comey, regardless of a recommendation made by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and that the decision had been made. In an interview with NBC News' Lester Holt, the president stated the following: "There's no good time to do it, by the way. Look, he's a showboat, he's a grandstander. The FBI has been in turmoil. You know that, I know that. Everybody knows that. You take a look at the FBI, a year ago; it was in virtual turmoil, less than a year ago. It hasn't recovered from that."
Fitzgerald explained that President Trump said he met with Rod Rosenstein regarding his recommendation, but he had made his decision already. However, in a letter to Comey, he said he had accepted the recommendation. "Rosenstein made a recommendation," President Trump told Holt. "He's highly respected, a very good guy, very smart guy. The Democrats like him. The Republicans like him. He made a recommendation. But regardless of his recommendation, I was going to fire Comey, Fitzgerald said."
In Trump's termination letter to Comey, he said he appreciated that he had informed him on three separate occasions that he was not under investigation. "He told me that, I mean he told me that," Trump told Holt.
Comey has given sworn testimony that there is an ongoing investigation, said Holt, asking if Comey was truthful when he told Trump he was not under investigation. "I know I'm not under investigation, me personally. I'm not talking about campaigns, I'm not talking about anything else," Trump said.
Reason for the uproar over the firing of FBI Director James Comey
On May 12, 2017, Joel M. Skousen wrote an article in his publication World Affairs Brief explaining what was behind the firing of FBI Director James Comey. Skousen stated the following: "Whenever a political firestorm of protests erupts in the establishment media after the removal of a high government official, you can bet that that official was a valued insider to the Deep State, which provides protection and immunity for all other insiders who are guilty of illegal acts. FBI Director James Comey proved that he was an integral part of that system when he exonerated Hillary Clinton after multiple and serious violations in the handling of classified information what she was secretary of state."
"Comey allegedly called Trump "crazy" after the allegations that the NSA was wiretapping the White House. Comey might have been technically correct that wiretaps are not used anymore, but he knows that the NSA spies on everyone here and abroad, and that includes the White House. Comey's refusal to investigate these spying allegations was one of the many things that eventually turned Trump against him. But it was Comey's insistence in pursuing the false intelligence investigation about claimed collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign in the election that finally turned Trump against Comey. He became even more suspicious when Comey showed no enthusiasm for tracking down the myriad of leaks coming out of the White House."
Trump Complained About Unfair Treatment by Media and Others
President Donald Trump spoke to 195 graduates of the Coast Guard Academy.
On May 17, 2017, President Donald Trump denounced his "critics and naysayers" at the Coast Guard Academy after more than a week of negative news coverage by the corrupt mainstream media beginning with his decision to fire James Comey as FBI director.
In an address at the commencement ceremony Coast Guard Academy, President Trump told the 195 graduates of the Class of 2017 to "put your head down and fight, fight, fight" when life presents challenges and adversity. President Trump stated the following: "Look at the way I've been treated lately, especially by the media. No politician in history, and I say this with great surety, has been treated worse or more unfairly. You can't let them get you down. You can't let the critics and the naysayers get in the way of your dreams. I guess that's why we won. Adversity makes you stronger. Don't give in, don't back down and never stop doing what you know is right. Nothing worth doing ever, ever, ever came easy and the more righteous your fight, the more opposition that you will face. Things are not always fair, things happen to you that you do not always deserve."
Trump also commended the new 195 Coast Guard officers telling them that they will be an asset to his efforts to protect the homeland, protect American harbors and seas from drug smuggling and human trafficking, and keep out "all who seek to do harm to our country.
The following day, on May 18, 2017, President Donald J. Trump complained on Twitter that he is being subjected to "the single greatest witch hunt of a politician in American history," the day after the Justice Department appointed a special counsel to lead the inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. He added on Twitter, "With all of the illegal acts that took place in the Clinton campaign and Obama Administration, there was never a special counsel appointed!"
Later on that same day, President Trump held a news conference following his meeting with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. When asked by a reporter about the appointment of special counsel, the president said, "I respect the move, but the entire thing has been a witch hunt."
The president said that any talk about impeachment is "totally ridiculous." President Trump stated the following regarding the Russia inquiry: "It divides the country. I'm fine with what everyone wants to do, but we have to get back to running this country. There is no collusion between certainly myself and my campaign… I can always speak for myself and the Russians-zero. Believe me, there's no collusion."
Time magazine created an anti-Trump cover depicting the Kremlin on top of the White House.
FBI Director James Comey deserved to be fired. The president's only mistake is that he should have fired him on his first day in office. As the editorial of Wall Street Journal suggested, Comey had some similarities with the way J. Edgar Hoover used to work.
There is no question in this writer's mind that what is occurring now in the United States is a slow coup d'état against President Donald J. Trump to force him to resign or be impeached. It was a terrible mistake for Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein to appoint former FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III to serve as a special counsel to oversee the investigation into Russian meddling in the election. Mueller's longtime friendship with Comey will make it very difficult for him to be objective over the president's dismissal of his friend and colleague of many years.
Mueller served several years as FBI director under President Barack Obama and he never once investigated the many crimes and scandals of the Obama administration or the many crimes and scandals committed by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Or Mueller did investigate these crimes, he never requested a grand jury to be set up.
In fact, Obama extended his term of service from 10 years to 12 since he was very pleased with the fact that the FBI under Robert S. Mueller never investigated him or members of his administration. The FBI, while Mueller was its director, had a great deal of information on the Muslim Brotherhood infiltration into the Obama administration. The FBI director Mueller never recommended that a grand jury to be impaneled to investigate the nationwide network of radical Islamic organizations that were actively working to subvert America and establish an Islamic State governed by Sharia law.
When Robert S. Mueller was FBI director in 2008, the Holy Land Foundation trial was adjudicated in Dallas, Texas. It was the culmination of a 15-year FBI investigation. It was the largest terrorism financing and Hamas trial in American history ever successfully prosecuted. Several Islamic radicals were sentenced to many years in prison. However, after President Obama assumed power in January 2009, the president and his appointed Attorney Generals Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch refused to prosecute any of the operatives from the many Muslim Brotherhood organizations or radical imams, who worked at mosques and Islamic centers and had terror connections, subsequent to the Holy Land Foundation trial.
Former counter terrorism FBI official John Guandolo wrote an article which was published on May 17, 2017 in the website Accuracy in Media. He stated that there are thousands of Islamic organizations whose stated objective is to wage civilization jihad in order to impose an Islamic state in America. He stated that he conservatively estimates that "well over 70%" of the "over 3,000 mosques, Islamic centers in the United States right now," belong to "the Muslim Brotherhood's network."
While this trial in Dallas, Texas revealed that there were hundreds of unindicted co-conspirators, including the leader of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Omar Ahmad, and CAIR itself, were never prosecuted. Where were Mueller and the FBI? The fact was that Mueller looked the other way since he did not want to upset the Marxist and radical Islamic President Barack Obama as well as his bosses at the Justice Department.
When FBI director Mueller had a few days left in office, he was asked to testify before Congress. He was asked by a Republican Senator the status of the FBI investigation into the many crimes committed by the Internal Revenue Service which harassed with impunity over 800 conservative and religious organizations in America. It appeared that he did not know anything about it. When he was asked who were the agents within the FBI who had been in charge of this investigation. Mueller answered that he did not know. He was obviously lying! This writer has no faith that Robert S. Mueller will conduct a fair investigation in spite of the fact of all the praised that he has received from members of Congress.
The appointment of Robert S. Mueller as special counsel was totally unnecessary since the FBI had been conducting his investigation since July 2016. Both former FBI Director James Comey and the now Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe had testified in Congress that they had the resources needed to continue the investigation into the alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Keeping this false investigation going for many months maintains the illusion that there is something wrong with President Trump and his associates. However, every time that the FBI, NSA, CIA, or any other agency is given the opportunity to respond with facts they are unable to do it. Quite the contrary, the Obama-appointed former Director of Intelligence James Clapper has testified in Congress that no evidence has been uncovered thus far of collusion between Donald Trump and Russia.
President Donald J. Trump needs to fight very hard against the conspiracy of the Deep State to overthrow him. President Trump needs to ask the Justice Department and the FBI when he appoints a new director to investigate the officials of the Deep State who are embedded in the federal government, including intelligence agencies, and are trying to undermine and, if possible, destroy his presidency. President Trump needs to ask the Justice Department and the FBI to investigate George Soros and others who are financing over 170 Marxist and radical organizations and paying criminals to destroy property.
President Donald Trump needs to reopen the investigation of the criminal Clinton Foundation, Benghazi, and other scandals and crimes committed by former President Bill and Hillary Clinton as well as the scandals and crimes committed by former President Barack Obama. The president needs to fight fire with fire. If the president does not, he will not be able to govern.
Moreover, President Donald J. Trump needs to understand that he is fighting a war against the members of the globalist elite of the New World Order. He needs to be aware that some of them are working in his administration and should not be trusted. Hillary Clinton was the candidate of the New World Order and the globalist elite cannot forgive him for having defeated who they wanted.
By now President Trump is very aware that members of the so-called "Deep State," who are embedded in the federal government, including intelligence agencies, are working to destroy his presidency. There is a slow coup d'état going on to drive him from power.
As this writer has written before either President Trump drains the swamp quickly or the creatures of the swamp will destroy him.
Filed Under: A-Blog, Donald Trump, Essentials, FBI, Featured Articles, Frank de Varona Tagged With: comey, coup, detat, director, fbi, firing, president, trump, turmoil


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10-minute mentors address questions common and unusual
Meetings, Workshops, and Trainings
Like a very formal round of "speed dating," mentees start at a seat with one mentor and ten minutes to get acquainted. In 10-minute mentor rounds, however, mentees' goal is not to get a date, but to glean concise bits of career advice before the bell rings.
Then they switch seats and face a new mentor with a new perspective on professional development.
In the 10 Minute Mentor session at SEM 2019, here are a few of the compelling conversations that were heard:
"I have a horrible title." One mentee was in an interesting predicament. They had a terrible title that doesn't really describe their job — so, when applying for jobs, took to changing the title to fit industry standard titles so companies could understand. "I've gotten to the final round of interviews by doing that -- only to not get the position due to the hiring institution researching my position and finding it doesn't exist. What do you recommend I do?"
"I see no path forward." Though there's a clear next career step for one mentee, there is no position available on their campus. "Do I leave after I've put in so much time building relationships or do I move on? I'm at a standstill."
"I can't find a mentor on my campus." In its second year, 10 Minute Mentors at SEM saw considerable growth. This opportunity to not only get advice but potentially build a relationship with a mentor is invaluable.
Questions like these and more were discussed amongst 13 volunteer mentors at SEM. Sourced from the SEM Advisory Group and as well as SEM attendees with the title of Vice President or above, the mentors represented a diverse set of institutions and locations.
When asked why they chose to volunteer their time at SEM the mentors answered:
We have a mentoring program on campus, so I know the value of mentoring.
Often times people are looking for ways to deal with other personnel.
I've had others walk me through. It seems only appropriate I give the same back.
It's useful to hear what others outside of my campus are dealing with. It gives me a better perspective on the guidance I give when back on my campus.
See more mentor stories in the AACRAO Connect "3 Minute Mentor" series.
Become an Ambassador at AACRAO's 2020 Annual Meeting

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Home Art+Music Playing Music, Building Houses
Playing Music, Building Houses
by Jonathan Austin
Singer-songwriter Warren Haynes has organized 30 years of annual concerts in Asheville to benefit construction of Habitat for Humanity homes in the Asheville area. The concerts have raised more than $2 million for the charity.
A street in an Asheville Habitat neighborhood was named to honor Soulshine, a song written by Haynes that was a hit for The Allman Brothers.
Volunteers pose for a photo during a pre-Christmas Jam Habitat work session.
As the history of Asheville is written, residents and visitors alike would be remiss to overlook the impact of the man named Warren Haynes.
Born in Asheville, Haynes grew up playing guitar in local bands before catching the eye of honky-tonk outlaw singer David Allen Coe. Haynes toured with Coe's band for four years, a time when he also co-wrote what became Garth Brooks' 1991 top hit Two of a Kind, Working on a Full House.
In 1989 Haynes joined The Allman Brothers Band, with whom he worked steadily over the years while also forming his own group, Gov't Mule. After the death of Jerry Garcia he was asked to tour with many of the surviving members of the Grateful Dead.
Despite all that, what enshrines Haynes as an Asheville treasure is the Christmas Jam, an annual music show that began 30 years ago over the Christmas holiday.
Getting together to play
Haynes says the first jam was just his effort to get musician friends together to jam when they all came home because many bands defer touring over the holidays.
"We were just looking at it like a one-time thing, and then we did it again, and then it grew," he said recently in an interview with SML.
"The first one was really more about getting all these musicians together to play music and have some fun around the Christmas holiday. The money was kind of an afterthought. 'Oh, we'll take the small amount of money we raise and donate it to charity,'" he remembers. "The main impetus was to get all of us together to play music. Then, 'Oh, that was cool, let's do it again next year.' Then it just seemed to build its own steam, which was really nice," Haynes said in a conversation from his New York home.
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The event grew to become a musical phenomena, bringing an ever-changing cast of renowned musicians to Asheville each December to play in the US Cellular Center, with almost all proceeds going to the Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity.
Over the years, the annual fundraiser has put $2.3 million into the local Habitat coffers. Concert proceeds have built nearly 40 Habitat homes "and helped offset infrastructure and development costs for entire Habitat neighborhoods in the Asheville area," the organization notes.
Haynes says the bedrock of his work to support Habitat stems from the basic belief that everyone deserves to have a home.
Growing up in Asheville, "there was always a sense of how important home is, how important friends and family are, how important just the interaction among human beings is," Haynes said. "I started traveling at a pretty young age," he said. Seeing the world "just kind of makes you keenly aware of how important all those basic ingredients" of home and friends and family are, "to your own personal happiness, and I think that applies … pretty much to everyone."
Habitat takes basic human needs and makes them reality, Haynes said. "It's a wonderful organization (that has) been a huge inspiration to us, and I feel really honored to be connected to them. From the time we began working together, my appreciation for what they do has only grown," he said.
In the community and among musicians, "more and more people are getting involved and the Christmas Jam, at this point, has inspired a lot of people from out of town or out of state to get involved with the Western North Carolina Habitat program" or their own Habitat organization back home.
"That's a beautiful thing," he said.
More that building houses
Yet the impact Christmas Jam has had on Asheville goes far beyond music building houses.
"It would be impossible to quantify how deeply Warren Haynes has inspired and bolstered his hometown," says Dodie Stephens, director of communications with Explore Asheville, the city's convention and visitor's bureau.
"The collaborative, creative and community orientated nature of music in Asheville has been alive and well for many years and Haynes has played an immeasurable role bringing musicians together and giving Asheville such a treasured platform," she added.
Asked about the Asheville of his youth, Haynes replied: "When we were growing up, there wasn't always an abundance of things to do, so in a lot of cases you had to create those things. We all spent tons of time driving around the Blue Ridge Parkway, going to Buzzard Rock—such a beautiful scenic place that so many of us just spent time hanging out," he said.
"I guess we all took for granted how beautiful that part of the country is, but we were definitely enthralled by it. Those things were inspiring."
But the Asheville of his memory was also a dying town. Many of the storefronts around Pritchard Park were empty, and major streets—Lexington Avenue, Broadway Street and Biltmore Avenue—were home to just a handful of thriving businesses.
Many people spent years helping bring Asheville back from that brink, but Christmas Jam—bringing top musicians to town and attracting hundreds of thousands of music fans from around the world to visit Asheville for one- or two-night epic music marathons that often ran more than eight hours a night—had an impact that is undeniable.
Of course The Allman Brothers Band came to support Warren's charity concert, but over the years so too did Peter Frampton, Sheryl Crow, the Steve Miller Band, Dave Matthews, The Avett Brothers, Jason Isbell, Ralph Stanley, Hot Tuna, The Doobie Brothers, Johnny Winter, Del McCoury, Joan Osborne, Travis Tritt, Widespread Panic, Phil Lesh & Friends, Blues Traveler, Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford, Ann Wilson of Heart, Bob Weir, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Jackson Browne, Hawaiian ukulele master Jake Shimabukuro, Ray LaMontagne, Marty Stuart, Ivan Neville, Little Feat, the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Los Lobos, Bela Fleck and John Paul Jones, the bassist in Led Zeppelin who flew in from England solely to play the Jam and entertain the crowd over two nights with energetic and mesmerizing mandolin playing.
As the annual show grew in popularity, Haynes says it became obvious that "we can continue this and make it grow and it's all organic and it all feels good. It was an opportunity that we weren't previously aware existed. So now, when I think about how much the whole thing is grown beyond our wildest imagination, it just sort of happened because that opportunity was there to make it happen because of all these amazing musicians that have contributed year after year after year."
'What a beautiful place'
"When I first started touring, in the late 70s, early 80s, no matter where I was, invariably I would run into someone who would say, 'where are you from?' and I would always say Asheville, North Carolina. At that time, nobody knew anything about Asheville. It would be, 'Oh, I'm not familiar with that,'" Haynes said.
"In the past 15 or 20 years, to an obviously increasing amount, when I said Asheville, everybody would say, 'Oh, I love Asheville. My wife and I went there. My father-in-law bought a place there.' Everybody now has a story about Asheville, because it's kind of resurrected itself in this really nice, honest, bohemian way that represents the community that we all experienced but was much smaller back then. That's just grown organically, and I think it's great that, every where I go I meet people who are falling in love with Asheville," he said.
"I remember being on the West Coast … decades ago and seeing an ad on the television for the Biltmore House and realizing, maybe for the first time, that maybe it wasn't just special in our area, that it was special to anyone. That's the way the mountains of North Carolina are, that's the way that whole region is. There are a lot of beautiful places in this world, but when people experience that, which is what we all grew up kind of taking for granted, it hits them the way it should, which is, 'Wow, what a beautiful place,'" Haynes said.
music habitat for humanity interview warren haynes


Proclamations are issued by the Office of the Governor. They may recognize a day, week or month. The goal of a proclamation is to honor, celebrate, or create awareness of an event or significant issue.
The Governor's Office reserves the right to approve or decline the production of a proclamation request and to edit any drafted material for final wording.
Each proclamation request MUST come from an Oregon resident. This includes requests from national, international, or out-of-state organizations.
Proclamations must have statewide significance and demonstrate relevancy to Oregon and Oregonians.
Provide a specific date for the proclamation (day, week, or month) and the desired due date for the completed proclamation. Please provide the date the proclamation is needed by. Be sure to include sufficient time to receive the hard copy via postal mail.
Each request must be in the proclamation template (including the WHEREAS sentence structure). However, the Governor's Office reserves the right to alter the wording of any requested proclamation.
Proclamations must fit on a single page and be in 12 point font, with room remaining for the signatures of the Governor and the Secretary of State as well as the State Seal of Oregon.
Please provide a contact name, phone number/e-mail address, and mailing address where you would like the final proclamation document sent.


On our third full day in Siem Reap we were really keen to take a break from temples, explore some of the surrounding countryside and try to get a feel for what a regular day in the life of a local Cambodian really felt like.
While there are dozens and dozens of tour operators that can take you on a tour of the 'floating village' of Tonle Sap (the massive lake near Siem Reap), most seem to be plagued by touts and other scammers trying to make a quick buck by either isolating you on your boat and then trying to sell you stuff you don't need, or by trying to put a guilt trip on you for not supporting their local 'charity' (ie. Barry and his brood of professional beggars).
We were close to giving up on the idea altogether, until we stumbled across Triple A Adventures. From the various reviews we could find it seemed that these guys took their tour a lot further out of town, to a village called Kompong Khleang. The other bonus was that they also spend half a day with you on bikes, moseying around one of the numerous villages that scatter the Cambodian countryside. Sounded perfect!
The day started out a little dubiously, as our driver for the day reversed into a concrete stub with a nasty crunch! No permanent damage thankfully and it seemed like just another morning in Siem Reap judging by the look on his face!
Things only got better from there, as we travelled the 45 minutes or so out of town to our first destination for the day.
Clambering out of the bus, we were greeted by a couple of locals with bottles of cold water and smiles all round! After selecting our steed of choice for the day's cycling, we proceeded to slowly amble our way along the red dirt roads of the Cambodian countryside.
So many cute chicks in Cambodia!!
These two were very vocal in letting us know that they weren't impressed by our mad cycling skills and white chicken legs!
Forget laps in an HSV, try a bullock drawn cart!
All the kids were so cheerful and happy. It couldn't help but put a smile on your own face!
I can't believe I got the timing perfect on this one!! The look on everyone else's faces is priceless!
Catching frogs (to eat)! The bag is full of them.
1. Someone coming on a bike, better move over.
2. Oh, more tourists. Carry on.
3. Hang on…is that what I think it is?
4. Check out how fat that guy is!!
5. How can he even balance on that bike?!!
The poor bugger! He wasn't even that big, but in their eyes he was bloody huge!!
Taking a detour because the tour guide actually managed to get a little bit lost (due to a road closure earlier on)!
After arriving back at the village we then took off in our minivan to the village of Kompong Khleang. KK is situated up one of the tributaries that feed into the massive Tonle Sap lake. Most people that live there are fisherman, with many not just living on the edge of the river, but actually living on floating houses out on the lake itself.
We spent some time at the house of an English teacher, meeting some of his students and eating lunch in his house/school room up on stilts.
How cute is this little fella?! He looks like an old man in the body of a 3 year old!
Beans drying in the sun. If you look closely you can see the green beans in amongst the husks.
I imagine a lot of day dreaming would happen at this window!
So simple, but one of the best lunches I had in the whole holiday!
While he looked fierce, this cat was the smoochiest feline we've ever come across!
This was our first time seeing these awesome massive sun visors that the locals wear!!
The guys looked like they were about to rob a bank!!
They even kept pigs out on the river!!
Driving back to town we stopped at a road side stall to try a local snack called Kralan (steamed rice with black beans and coconut milk). I thought it was ok, but Karen loved it!
Last day in Tokyo (cod sperm surprise!), and business class flights home!!


text:
Albania Church Records
For information about records for non-Christian religions in Albania not discussed in this article, go to the Religious Records page.
2 Coverage
3 Content
4 Accessing the Records
5 How to Find Records
5.1 Digital Copies of Church Records in the FamilySearch Catalog
5.2 Writing for Records
6 Roman Catholic Church Records
6.2 Historical Background
7 Eastern Orthodox Church Records
8 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Records
8.1 Online Records
9 Greek Catholic Church Records
9.1 Written Background
10 Protestant Church Records
10.1 Writing for Records
10.2 Historical Background
Church records were recorded by church clergymen and include baptism, marriage, and burial registers. These parish registers include Roman-Catholic and Greek-Orthodox congregations. Church books are a primary source of birth, marriage, and death information for Christian ancestors from Albania. They identify names of parents, prove relationships, and are very useful for linking generations. It is important to remember that historically only about 30% of the Albania's population was Christian. [1]
The most-commonly practiced religion in Albania is Islam (mainly Sunni or Bektashi), the second-most-commonly practiced religion is Christianity (mainly Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant), however there are also many irreligious people.
Albania is constitutionally a secular country since 1967, and as such, "neutral in questions of belief and conscience": The former Communist dictatorship declared Albania as the world's first and only "Atheist state". Believers faced harsh punishments, and many clergymen were killed.[2]
Coverage[edit | edit source]
The earliest church records date from about 1700; many date from the late 1800s. Most churches continued to keep records until the latter 1940s. Many continued until 1950 when ruthless persecution of clergy and religion brought an end to the keeping of these records. A few churches kept records as late as 1967. Only 30% of the population was Christian, so the majority of Albanians will not be found in these records.
Content[edit | edit source]
Baptisms – name of individual, date of birth and baptism, names of parents (including mother's maiden name), names of godparents.
Marriages – names of the groom and bride, ages, date and place of marriage; sometimes birthplaces and parents of groom and bride; names and residences of witnesses; other pertinent facts.
Deaths and Burials – name of the deceased, date and place of death and burial, age at time of death, marital status, cause of death, name of spouse; for children often also parents' names.
Other Lists – confirmations, nuptials and proclamations, church census, chronologies, masses observed, bestowal of property, leases, church correspondence, visitations, statistics, etc. Some of these additional lists date from as early as 1600.
Approximate distribution of religions in Albania in the early 1900s, based on the 1908 Ottoman census and the 1918 Albanian census.
Accessing the Records[edit | edit source]
Some Church records may be with local parishes or Dioceses. Responsibility for keeping these records lies with the Central State Archives of Albania in Tiranë which has many of the older church records. These archives are accessible to scholars. Some records may also be in other storage facilities. Additionally, some church records may have been acquired by civil registration offices or kept by the church. Unfortunately there has been considerable loss of church records in Albania.
The Family History Library has microfilmed 30% of Albania's church records, including most of the existing records of the district of Shkodër.
How to Find Records[edit | edit source]
Digital Copies of Church Records in the FamilySearch Catalog[edit | edit source]
Watch for digitized copies of church records to be added to the collection of the FamilySearch Library. Some records might have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at a Family History Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations. To find records:
a. Click on the records of Albania.
b. Click on Places within Albania and a list of towns will appear.
c. Click on your town if it appears, or the location which you believe was the parish which served your town or village.
d. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
e. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the listing for the record. . The magnifying glass indicates that the record is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the records.
Writing for Records[edit | edit source]
You will probably need to write to or email the national archives, the diocese, or local parish priests to find records. Use Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy for help with composing letters. Then, use an Albanian translation service.
Maps.me Church Listings for Albania
Google Maps search results for churches in Albania
Roman Catholic Church Records[edit | edit source]
The Catholic Directory: Albania
Google Maps search results for Catholic churches in Albania
Historical Background[edit | edit source]
In the 2011 census, about 10.03% of Albania's population declared Roman Catholic Christianity as of 2011 census.Albania once numbered eighteen episcopal Sees, some of them having uninterrupted activity from the dawn of the Catholicism until today. The country has been a Roman Catholic bridgehead in the Balkans, with Catholic Albanians playing a role not unlike the Croats in the former Yugoslavia. However, Ottoman rule ultimately vastly decreased the number of Catholics in Albania and elsewhere in the Balkans, with waves of conversions to Islam and to a lesser extent Orthodoxy occurring especially in the 17th century after a series of failed rebellions and punitive measures which involved drastic raises in the taxes of the Catholic population.[3]
Eastern Orthodox Church Records[edit | edit source]
These do not necessarily show three different churches, but just responses to different keywords used in the search engline--lots of overlap.
Google Maps search results for Greek Orthodox churches in Albania
Google Maps search results for Albanian Orthodox churches in Albania
Online Address List
Google Maps search results for Eastern Orthodox churches in Albania
According to the 2011 Census, 6.75% of the Albanian population adhere to the Albanian Orthodox Church. Three ethnic groups, Albanians, Greeks, and Aromanians, account for the vast majority of Albania's Orthodox believers. Metropolitan Theofan Fan Noli established the Albanian Orthodox Mission under the American diocese. The Orthodox Church was allowed no official existence in communist Albania. Between 1890 and 1920, approximately 25,000 Albanians, the majority of them Orthodox Christians from southeastern Albania, emigrated to the United States, settling in and around Boston. Like many other Orthodox immigrants, they were predominantly young, illiterate, male peasants. Like so many other Balkan immigrants, a large number (almost 10,000) returned to their homeland after World War I.[4]
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Records[edit | edit source]
Online Records[edit | edit source]
Online information is available to current members, for deceased members and immediate family members who are still living. Sign in to FamilySearch and then select Family Tree in the drop-down menu.
Leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints visited Albania in 1991 and sent the first Latter-day Saint missionaries there in June 1992. These missionaries included four who preached and one married couple who assisted with agricultural projects. In 1994 Albania was among the Eastern European nations receiving shipments of food and other humanitarian relief supplies from the Church. Church leaders established the Albania Tirana Mission in July 1996. Total Church Membership: 3,216. Congregations: 14. [5]
Greek Catholic Church Records[edit | edit source]
Written Background[edit | edit source]
Southern Albania in the Catholic Directory
The Albanian Greek Catholic Church exists in southern Albania and is under an Apostolic Administration. It has less than 4,000 members. The Albanian Greek Catholic Church, also known as the Albanian Byzantine Catholic Church, is an autonomous (sui iuris in Latin) Byzantine Rite particular church in communion with Rome, whose members live in Albania and which comprises the Apostolic Administration of Southern Albania. It is not to be confused with the Italo-Albanian Catholic Church. The apostolic administratorship of Southern Albania has 3,200 Catholics in nine parishes, with 11 churches, and is served by four diocesan and 10 religious priests, 10 male and 97 female religious, who administer 10 schools and 20 charitable institutions. The great majority of these are of the Roman Rite.[6]
Protestant Church Records[edit | edit source]
Google Maps search results for Protestant churches in Albania
Google Maps search results for Albanian Evangelical churches in Albania
In the early 19th century, in accordance with the Protestant practice of making the Scriptures available to all people in their common tongue, the British and Foreign Bible Society began to make plans for the translation, printing, and distribution of the New Testament in Albanian. Soon Alexander Thomson, a Scottish missionary, joined the Society and visited Albania in 1863. In the late 19th century the Society's workers traveled throughout Albania distributing Bibles, under the leadership of Gjerasim Qiriazi who converted, preached the Gospel in Korça, and became the head of the first "Evangelical Brotherhood". Qiriazi sought official government recognition for the Albanian Evangelical Church in 1887, a pursuit which would not be fulfilled until 10 March 2011. [7]
↑ The Family History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "Family History Record Profile: Albania," Word document, private files of the FamilySearch Content Strategy Team, 1991-1998.
↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Religion in Albania", in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Albania, accessed 14 April 2020.
↑ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "Facts and Statistics: Brazil, https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/country/albania, accessed 14 April 2020.
↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Albanian Greek Catholic Church", in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albanian_Greek_Catholic_Church, accessed 14 April 2020.
Retrieved from "https://wwwp.familysearch.org/wiki/en/index.php?title=Albania_Church_Records&oldid=4096869"
Church records in Albania


Imagine giving captopril, a blood pressure-lowering agent, to patients infected with anthrax, many of whom may have extremely low blood pressures because they're in shock or on the verge of it. Sounds crazy, right? But that's just what some clinicians suggested in the wake of the 2001 anthrax letters, based on animal studies showing that captopril could inhibit the lethal anthrax toxin.
For a more recent example of how enthusiasm for important findings in basic science can often get the best of caution when it comes to their clinical relevance – with potentially dangerous results – see the following bit from a Perspective in the Sept. 10, 2004, issue of Science. The article, by Tracey Rouault of the National Institutes of Health's Cell Biology and Metabolism Branch, accompanied a study on how Staphylococcus aureus gets the iron it needs to be an effective infectious agent.
Not to mention an effective mechanism of starving sick patients of iron and making them anemic, which doesn't seem like a terribly good idea and is probably why bloodletting killed thousands. French statisticians knew by the mid-18th century that bloodletting hurt more than it helped. Rouault may have been giving too much credit to her physician predecessors. In an E-mail to The Scientist, she acknowledged that ''the cure might be worse for the disease'' and that she doesn't ''think there is any reason to return to bloodletting.'' Agreed. If you have the misfortune of becoming infected with methicillin-resistant S. aureus, keep the bloodletters at bay.


Project specification: To build a new responsive website that both represented the Cornerhouse visually and also lets readers know what to expect on their visit and what events are on.
Sophie and I first met when at my Thursday Freelance group in Hoole. I had also visited the Cornerhouse several times to sample the delicious wine and cheese! The Cornerhouse had an existing website that was functional but needed updating to a modern platform - so we started from scratch. Sophie was keen to have overall control of the website and to be able to add events, blogs and her social media accounts.
It has been an absolute pleasure to work with Sophie on this project. It it fantastic to work with a really engaging business that is keen to learn and really drive forward their business and utilise their website to it's potential. I would highly recommend a visit to the fantastic Cornerhouse if you are in the area - and if you are a cheese lover, you can't go wrong!


Infrared Saunas work by heating your muscles, which increases blood flow comparable to when you exercise. It elevates your core temperature producing a dialation of all blood vessels, which brings relief and healing to muscles, joints and soft tissue injuries. Boosting your circulation also helps carry off metabolic wastes and transports oxygen rich blood to oxygen depletion muscles and joints to they can recuperate faster. Infrared waves penetrate to the deeper layers of the skin and assist cell replacement and deep cleansing of your skin. Other effects include purging clogged pores of deeply imbedded impurities and dead skin cells. A healthy flow of nutrients to your skin helps relieve acne, eczema, psoriasis and burns.


text:
AFP | Baghdad May 26, 2019 Last Updated at 17:40 IST
An Iraqi court on Sunday sentenced three French citizens to death after they were found guilty of joining the Islamic State group, a court official said.
Captured in Syria by a US-backed force fighting the jihadists, they are the first French IS members to receive death sentences in Iraq, where they were transferred for trial.
Named as Kevin Gonot, Leonard Lopez and Salim Machou, they have 30 days to appeal.
Iraq has taken custody of thousands of jihadists repatriated in recent months from neighbouring Syria, where they were caught by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces during the battle to destroy the IS "caliphate".
Iraqi courts have placed on trial hundreds of foreigners, condemning many to life in prison and others to death, although no foreign IS members have yet been executed.
Those sentenced on Sunday were among 12 French citizens who were caught in Syria and transferred to Iraqi custody in February.
Rights groups including Human Rights Watch have criticised Iraq's anti-terror trials, which they say often rely on circumstantial evidence or confessions obtained under torture.
The country remains in the top five "executioner" nations in the world, according to an Amnesty International report in April.
Analysts have also warned that prisons in Iraq have in the past acted as "academies" for future jihadists, including IS supremo Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.


text:
Q: Kornshell variable definition: What is ?FOO? I found a line of code in a kornshell script:
foo=`basename ?BAR?`

What does the question marks mean?
Thank you

A: touch BAR ABAR ABARZ
ls ?BAR?
ABARZ

? is normally a shell wildcard char that matches 1 character, and that 1 character position must be in use,  as shown in the example above. It's like a 1-char version of '*', match 1 char (that must be there). Notice that if you change to
ls ?BAR*

You get output like
ABAR  ABARZ

Your code shows the same behavior
foo=$(basename ?BAR?)
echo $foo
ABARZ

Does that make sense? Not really, but given the small context you have given the other possible interpretation is that the original script writer is using ?BAR? as a place-holder and  telling you  "change this to a real/meaningful value".
Other may have other ideas.
IHTH

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
» Using the library » Branches
Discover the location, collections and contacts for each of our specialised library branches.
Group Study Room
Guide for New Students
Located in the School of Art, the Art & Music Library provides collections and services to support staff and students at the School of Art and...
The Chifley Library, named after Joseph Benedict Chifley (Prime Minister of Australia from 1945-1949), supports the teaching, learning and research...
The WK Hancock Building is known as Hancock Library and provides material from most areas of science; engineering; technology and medicine....
The Law Library provides a wide range of legal resources for staff and students of the Australian National University. Collections The law...
The RG Menzies Building, known as the Menzies Library, is the hub of the Library's Asia Pacific focused services. The Menzies Library is a heritage-...
The ANU Print Repository comprises 3,284m2 of floor space, most of which is allocated to shelving. Library staff manage the collection and visitors...


text:
NEWS SCHOLARSHIPS and GRANTS
Rest and Refuge Fellowship FOR JOURNALISTS FROM COUNTRIES WITH RESTRICTED FREEDOM OF THE PRESS
Our Rest and Refuge Fellowship program for journalists from countries with restricted press freedom is going into the next round! Apply now. The deadline is Dec. 31 2021.
The Rest and Refuge Fellowship program is a joint project of Reporters Without Borders Germany and taz Panter Foundation. It has taken place annually since 2015.
Reporters Without Borders is an international human rights organization that promotes press freedom worldwide and helps persecuted journalists. The taz Panter Foundation is a non-governmental organization that organizes training for media professionals in Germany and other countries and is closely associated with the newspaper tageszeitung (taz).
For 2022, we are inviting two journalists from countries with restricted press freedom to Berlin. For a limited period of six months we will grant them time off to recover from difficult working conditions and to further their professional and personal development. After the six-month fellowship, they return to their home countries strengthened to continue with their journalistic work.
We reimburse travel expenses, provide an apartment in Berlin and travel health insurance, and pay a monthly stipend of €1,000. Participants can, if they wish, withdraw completely from public life and use the time in Berlin to work on their own projects. However, we also provide opportunities for further education, professional networking and resilience building. For example, all fellows are given the opportunity to take a language course and get to know German media outlets. However, the primary goal is for the fellows to enjoy a sabbatical period and thus return to their home country strengthened. The fellowship is limited to a period of six months.
Several years of work experience as a journalist
Note: Although we consider the work of human rights activists to be very valuable, we cannot invite human rights activists who are not full-time journalists, as they do not fall under our mandate.
Personal threat due to journalistic work or difficult working conditions caused by external factors.
Good knowledge of the English or German language at a conversational level
A passport that is valid for at least another twelve months from the date of the application (or that can be independently extended/reapplied for)
A state of health that allows for longer trips and a six-month stay in the host country, as well as sufficient independence to master everyday challenges.
Willingness and possibility to return to the country of origin after the period of stay
Time period of the fellowship:
The fellowships last six months. A stay in Berlin is planned for a period from 1st of May until 31st of October 2022. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, however, participants should expect that these dates may have to change. In addition, participants must commit to following the pandemic health and safety regulations in Germany at any given time.
Your application must include the following documents:
The completed and signed application form
A scan of your current passport
Your curriculum vitae in tabular form (CV)
A motivation letter (1-2 pages) in which you explain why you need a sabbatical. Please elaborate on what specific factors endanger or complicate your working situation. Please also write about how you plan to use your time off in Berlin.
Please send the completed application form and the other requested documents as individual PDFs to: fellowship@taz.de. Deadline is Dec. 31st 2021. If you prefer to use a secure way of transmission and you have a protonmail account, you can send it to restandrefuge@protonmail.com. We also offer to receive the application via the messenger service Signal: +49 151 2688 4845.
The selection of the 2022 fellows will be communicated to the applicants in the beginning of February 2022 at the latest. Finalists will be invited to a video call to make the final decision.
We ask for your understanding that that due to the number of applications we can only contact applicants who are shortlisted for the program.
If you have any questions about the application process, please contact lok@reporter-ohne-grenzen.de.
The two fellows will be appointed by a committee consisting of representatives of RSF and the taz.Panter Foundation. The selection is made according to the following criteria:
Security situation and working conditions. Please be specific in describing your situation so we can get an idea of what personal threats you are facing.
Professional experience. Journalists with several years of work experience will be scored higher.
Suitability for the program.
Applicant's vision of how they would like to use their time in Berlin.
A country of origin for which the organizations can obtain German visas.
Quality of the motivation letter. (Both form and content are evaluated.)
Diversity of the selection. The program supports a diverse group of fellowship holders. This includes the following factors: Country of origin, gender, thematic focus, journalistic medium, as well as various factors contributing to discrimination or marginalization.
https://www.reporter-ohne-grenzen.de/en/scholarships/the-rest-and-refuge-scholarship/call-application
European University Institute Policy Leader Fellowship
Regional Expert job in #NewYork/ #UnitedNations


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A Very, Very Intimate Evening With Sarah McLachlan
Multi-platinum singer-songwriter shed some of the mystery in New York City stop on summer tour
By Suzy Exposito
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Multi-platinum singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan shed some of the mystery in New York City stop on summer tour. Angel Marchini/Shutterstock
"People have this preconceived notion of me, and often it upsets them when I try to set the record straight," said 30-year-old Sarah McLachlan in a 1998 Rolling Stone interview. "But at this point I could give a shit if the Internet is all atwitter. You wouldn't believe the video treatments we get. It's all me on some white stallion with long, flowing robes in a forest. Jesus Christ, enough already!"
Twenty-one years later, the Grammy- and Juno-winning artist returned to the woods — namely, the Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, New York — to perform a dazzling retrospective, billed as "An Intimate Evening with Sarah McLachlan." With support from the New York Pops, the largest independent pop music orchestra in the United States, McLachlan emerged at sundown to share 20 of her greatest hits and deep cuts, and of course, a little gossip.
"I feel like this is a safe space," professed McLachlan. Dressed in a (long, flowing) champagne gown, McLachlan set a familiar tone early on with the smoldering rocker, "Possession"; then tempered the flame with her 1995 piano ballad, "I Will Remember You." By the time she reached her 1997 hit, "Adia," she matched her velveteen croon with the same candor she uses to color her interviews.
"So, I fell in love with my best friend's ex," she said of writing the song. "Some lines you don't cross… but it wasn't a fling! We got married and had kids. She got married and had kids."
"Then she got divorced, then I got divorced," added McLachlan, referring to ex-husband and former drummer, Ashwin Sood. "But [she and I] are still tight. Hey, isn't it National Girlfriends Day?"
Guided by the surgical precision of conductor Steven Reineke, the New York Pops carefully trailed McLachlan as she ambled through cuts from her best-selling record, 1997's Surfacing. Wielding an acoustic guitar, she opened "Building a Mystery" by recounting her old apartment on New Orleans' Bourbon Street. And during the slow-burning, piano version of "Sweet Surrender" — which she said was inspired by the 1995 movie starring Nicolas Cage, Leaving Las Vegas, plus "one hideous breakup" — her silken verses were underscored by a mighty choir of cicadas in the trees. (Perhaps there was some substance behind her enchanted, Nineties sorceress cosplay.)
Rarely one to discuss politics, McLachlan carefully alluded to current affairs through her personal lens, as a mother to two daughters — who she described as her "greatest joys, greatest loves," and winkingly, her "greatest concerns." Before performing 2003's "World On Fire," written in the wake of the September 11th attacks, marveled McLachlan: "What a crazy world our kids are growing up in! I get a little bit sad when I turn on the news, there's so much negative and so much divisive stuff. There is so much beauty and goodness in this world, and the news never tends to pick up on it."
As if to quell the residual anxiety of "World On Fire," McLachlan kicked off her treat of an acoustic song ("my only singalong," she told the audience), 1993's "Ice Cream." Then, upon leaving the stage, McLachlan put on very little pretense — mere seconds' worth — before she resurfaced to play a three-song encore. She flexed her operatic falsetto with the electro-pop number, "Fear"; drew the crowd in closer in "Love Come"; then brought it all back home with her signature tearjerker, "Angel." McLachlan's touring bassist, vocalist and not-so-secret weapon Melissa McClellan, took over the second verse with gusto, stepping up the shattering lullaby to a power ballad that rivaled both a crying audience and the ever-persistent cicadas.
Yet the concert left many of her diehard fans wondering aloud: what's next for the folk-pop superstar? In 2016 she recorded a Christmas album, Wonderland; there's also her work as founder of Sarah McLachlan Music School, an academy for underserved and at-risk youth in Canada. But she has recently mused the possible resurgence of her iconic women's music festival, Lilith Fair.
"All I can say is never say never," she said in an interview with New York Post.
The singer also outlined her present-day dream lineup, comprised of contemporary pop divas. "Lizzo," said McLachlan, "That's all I've been listening to right now; I love her so much. Lorde would be great. Alessia Cara. Billie Eilish for sure. And Meghan Trainor. There's a shit-ton of great artists!" As both the popularity and diversity of female artists grows exponentially across the globe, 2020 begs a revival of McLachlan's legacy fest.
Sarah McLachlan and the New York Pops Setlist
Song For My Father
Rivers of Love
Building A Mystery
U Want Me 2
Loving You Is Easy
World On Fire
Love Come
Concert,
New York Pops,
As Showtime and Paramount+ Combine, We Have Some Answers


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17 Unique Places You Should Visit
This picture shows Quiver trees with the Milky Way at night at the giants playground in Keetsmanshoop, Namibia, Africa. The quiver tree is namibias national monument symbol. It is also calles kookerboom in afrikaans.
2017 may have only begun but the team at SheBrisbane is already looking for mid-year holidays to keep us inspired!
If you are lucky enough to have travelled to the world's most popular destinations, maybe it's time to try someplace you've never thought to visit before?
Suzie Strutner of The Huffington Post lists her top 17 epic places you never thought to travel but should. Here they are…
1. South Korea
Don't let its northern neighbour scare you off: South Korea is full of adventurous travellers' delights like national parks, mountains and islands. Ski resorts here are top-notch, as some are preparing to host the 2018 Winter Olympics. For a more urban feel, try Korean BBQ in Seoul or chill out in Busan, a coastal city.
2. Mauritius
Mauritius is delicious. This tiny island nation in the Indian Ocean offers up a low-key vibe and endless turquoise waters perfect for sports like wind and kitesurfing. You can also sample local rum and street food or explore churches, temples, mosques and lighthouses from Mauritius' rich history as a colonial trade hub.
SAPSIWAI VIA GETTY IMAGES – Le Morne Brabant is a stunning UNESCO World Heritage site that serves as "an exceptional testimony to… resistance to slavery."
The world's ninth-largest country is not just for Borat: Fans of architecture, city tours and wilderness explorations will feel right at home in this little-explored corner of the earth. Start in Almaty, the biggest city, for clothing markets and upscale restaurants. Then, venture out to the Tian Shan mountains and hike sacred forests where many modern fruit crops were first cultivated.
4. Cyprus
This lush Mediterranean island sat under the rule of many ancient empires, and it shows: A trip here might include visits to a Byzantine monastery, a mosque or the tombs of high-ranking Hellenistic and Roman officials, which are part of a larger UNESCO world heritage site. Oh, and did we mention the island's postcard-perfect beaches?
ROSITA SO IMAGE – In the port town of Kyrenia, you can take a boat cruise to swimming and snorkelling spots or visit a castle for a charming bird's-eye view of the harbour.
Did you know Latvia has white sand beaches? This Baltic Sea gem, formerly part of the Soviet Union, is full of little surprises and a slight Scandinavian flair. The capital, Riga, was named the European Capital of Culture in 2014, and roughly half of the country is made up of pristine, accessible natural ecosystems. Historical Old Towns, churches and castles abound.
6. Ecuador
Perched between Colombia and Peru on the Pacific, Ecuador has everything: mountains, beaches, rainforest, volcanoes, hot springs, and the famous wildlife of the Galapagos Islands. Once part of the Inca Empire, this dramatically beautiful land is steeped in both pre-Colombian and Spanish colonial culture and is perfect for cheap travellers, trek-happy adventurers and history lovers ― after all,Quito's sprawling UNESCO-tapped city center is the colonial jewel of South America. (Bonus: Ecuador is on the dollar, so there's no need to exchange currency.)
DC_COLOMBIA VIA GETTY IMAGES – Above is a photo of Bartomole Island in Ecuador's Galapagos Islands.
7. Samoa
This island nation ― not be confused with its equally awesome neighbour, American Samoa ― includes 10 islands brimming with volcanoes, waterfalls, rainforests, swimming holes and beaches. Journeying to a natural ocean blowhole or diving deep into a cave pool is just the beginning. Down-to-earth travellers will enjoy its lack of fancy resorts, too.
8. Uruguay
Uruguay doesn't get as much attention as neighbouring Argentina and Brazil, but this polished, progressive paradise on the Atlantic has a pinch of European flair and is well worth a visit. Experience gaucho culture on a ranch of rolling hills, take to the surf at Punta del Diablo, or party the night away in the clubs at Punta del Este.
RICHARD I'ANSON VIA GETTY IMAGES – Stroll the cosmopolitan streets of Montevideo, including the famous Plaza Independencia.
9. Namibia
First-time visitors to Africa should start here, in the world's oldest desert, to experience the thrill of feeling like the last tourist on Earth. Considering its vast selection of wildlife, national parks,shipwrecks and larger-than-life sand dunes, Namibia somehow remains awesomely uncrowded. Many cities and towns have a distinctly German feel ― complete with German restaurants and colonial architecture ― due to years under European rule.
10. Guatemala
Mayan ruins play a starring role in Guatemala. Deep in the jungle, Tikal National Park is a lush playground of plazas, temples and dwellings that are well over 1,000 years old. Equally gorgeous are Guatemala's active volcanoes, cascading lagoons and the Caribbean-blue Lake Petén Itzá. Even with all these natural wonders, a historic hotel-museum tops the list of places to visit nationwide.
SIMONDANNHAUER VIA GETTY IMAGES – From the 6th century B.C. to the 10th century A.D., Mayans inhabited what is now Tikal National Park. Current residents include jaguars, howler monkeys and more than 60 species of bats.
11. Papua New Guinea
One look at the water should make it, ahem, clear that this is a paradise. The U.S. State Department cautions that due to crime, an organised tour booked through a travel agency is the best way to explore this stunningly diverse and practically untouched country. (There's little luxury involved, but it's a trip of a lifetime.) Try a trekking tour along the rugged, mountainous Kokoda Track or journey to a sing-sing festival, at which Papua New Guineans display their many unique tribal cultures through music and dance.
12. Newfoundland, Canada
Why Newfoundland? Here, east coasters can kayak with icebergs without taking a long flight to Greenland or Alaska and beyond. Then there's 18,000 miles of unspoiled coastline with some 200 walking trails, plus the 22 species of whales that pass through Newfoundland and Labrador between May and September. Add in dramatic, glacier-carved fjords, and this part of Canada is truly a dream for nature lovers who prefer their international travel over-easy.
THOMAS KITCHIN & VICTORIA HURST / DESIGN PICS VIA GETTY IMAGES – Icebergs arrive from the Arctic each spring to places like Trinity Bay, above.
13. Romania
Dracula's homeland oozes eeriness and intrigue: The country has emerged from its Communist past to the delight of travellers who come to explore its medieval towns and ornate castles, including the one where fiction's scariest bloodsucker once lived. Beyond the charming cobblestone streets, you'll find adventurous alpine hikes through the towering Carpathian Mountains and all-inclusive beach resorts on the Black Sea coast.
14. Laos
Even backpackers who have "seen it all" in Thailand and Cambodia will be awestruck in Laos. Stunning waterfalls, soaring mountains and blazing green rice fields are best enjoyed at the Laotian locals' decidedly slow pace of life. Take a break from zip-lining and cave kayaking to join a yoga retreat or help out on an organic farm. The cuisine ― think sticky rice, papaya salad and fresh fish ― is worth savouring, too.
ELMVILLA VIA GETTY IMAGES – A hot air balloon flies over Vang Vieng, a jungle town and magnet for backpackers.
15. Azerbaijan
"Untapped" may be the best way to describe this coastal country between Iran and Russia. Start in the capital of Baku, whose Old City has UNESCO world heritage status as a rare example of ancient architecture. Then, move out to explore quaint rural villages at the base of the Great Caucasus mountains. Former Peace Corps volunteers have set up a network of local home stays to help visitors enjoy the country's outer fringes, where paved roads are scarce but the land is lush.
16. Slovenia
Croatia's been a hot travel destination for a few years now, but don't overlook its charming neighbour to the north. The snowy peaks of the Julian Alps are the dramatic backdrop for Slovenia's storybook Lake Bled, while outdoor restaurants line the river walk in the friendly capital city Ljubljana and the sprawling Postojna Cave is a dramatic diversion. (Pro tip: You'll likely save a few dollars by flying into Venice, Italy, rather than Ljubljana ― it's not far over the border.)
MATTHEW WILLIAMS-ELLIS / ROBERTHARDING VIA GETTY IMAGES – The Franciscan Church of the Annunciation overlooks Ljubljana's famous Triple Bridge, a lively spot at night.
17. The Seychelles
Will and Kate honeymooned here, so you know the views are fit for royalty. This collection of around 115 islands in the Indian Ocean is basically a beach-y theme park, with inlets of every size and type. It could take weeks to see them all. Thank goodness there are both private island villas and casual B&Bs to stay in.