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Category Archives: Christian Cameron
Christian Cameron: The New Achilles (review)
The New Achilles (2019)
(The first book in the Commander series)
Alexanor is a man who has seen too much blood. He has left the sword behind him to become a healer in the greatest sanctuary in Greece, turning his back on war.
But war has followed him to his refuge at Epidauros, and now a battle to end the freedom of Greece is all around him. The Mediterranean superpowers of Rome, Egypt and Macedon are waging their proxy wars on Hellenic soil, turning Greek farmers into slaves and mercenaries.
When wounded soldier Philopoemen is carried into his temple, Alexanor believes the man's wounds are mortal but that he is not destined to die. Because he knows Philopoemen will become Greece's champion. Its last hero. The new Achilles.
I love it when a new Christian Cameron is released, in my opinion he is the finest writer in Historical fiction and Fantasy Fiction.
The New Achilles is no different it is exceptional, while reading i had to stop so often the really appreciate and think through some of the points raised, the ethos and philosophy used for the differing sides is both enlightening and entertaining, the politics and the geography described with subtle information drops and breathtaking detail, rarely have i been challenged and entertained in equal measure, add to that Alexanors and Philopoemens love lives, which will just break your heart. This slower reading approach was my choice and was a challenge because in his usual style Christian and his characters will pull you into the ancient Greek world and hold you there, to feel the sweat blood and tears of the time as well as the everyday activities, its full life immersion, if you're not careful you get swept along and the book will end before you know it, as it was it still ended far too soon for me, i wanted book 2 immediately.
I also love how this series will dovetail with Ben Kanes excellent new series Clash of Empires (book one Clash of Empires and The Falling Sword)
A high contender for my book of the year
3. Light Bringer (2019)
Filed under Christian Cameron, Historical Fiction, Uncategorized
Christian Cameron: Sword of Justice (review)
Christian Cameron (b.1962)
1367: Europe stands on the brink of total war.
Political alliances are beginning to rupture. No state is immune: England, France, the Holy Roman Empire, Milan, Genoa, Venice, Constantinople . . . Every mercenary knight for hundreds of miles must sharpen his sword and prepare for battle.
But Sir William Gold has other problems. Just to reach Europe, he must capture its most unassailable fortress. He must also protect his liege-lord, the Green Count, from assassins hell-bent on his demise.
The balance of power in the West will change. William Gold must trust to hope, and his men, that he lands on the winning side . . .
Book 4 in the Chivalry series and while not my favourite series by Christian Cameron, I think probably the series that feels the most alive and real. This is a series that I feel has taught me much about a time I knew so little, and its always done in such a light handed way, i never feel like im being taught, im just drawn into the period and everything is shown to me, presented in a way to entertain and educate, every item, every place and every action of a fight.
In this latest book William Gold returns home to Europe, and all the petty squabbles of small and great nations, the power-plays and back stabbing, that allows the author to make some very insightful comparisons to the companies travels in Outremer. But on the more intimate stage William must protect his Lord and his lady from the machinations of the Prince of Achea and of course inevitably Camus, who seems to become more and more depraved in every book. The plans of the bad guys in this book allow for some great scenes and a true sense of the spirit of the books , the Chivalry of William and his men, and the struggle to live to that code against those who would do what they will, when they want.
William Gold may be a real figure from history, but in the chivalry series ,where there are so many gaps in historical knowledge there is fodder for the writer to explore, there has over the series been a blending an evolution of William Gold, so much so that at times im not sure where William Gold begins and Christian Cameron ends, when a person puts that much passion into a character and also that much of his own personal experiences its inevitable and its wonderful from the readers perspective.
I highly recommend this series and indeed all of Christian books
A Song of War (2016) (with Libbie Hawker, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, Stephanie Thornton, S J A Turney and Russell Whitfield)
Forge of Darkness (2019)
Christian Cameron: The Green Count (Review)
(1962 – )aka Miles Cameron, Gordon Kent
After the bloody trials of Alexandria, Sir William Gold is readying for a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He hopes, too, that the Holy City might allow his relationship with Emile, cousin of the Green Count of Savoy, to develop.
But the Roman Emperor of Constantinople has been taken hostage by an unknown enemy, and the Green Count is vital to the rescue effort. It is up to Sir William to secure his support, but he soon finds that his past, and his relationship with Emile, might have repercussions he had not foreseen….
Suddenly thrust onto the stage of international politics, Sir William finds himself tangled in a web of plots, intrigue and murder.
I'd saved this book, i knew i would enjoy it, it was more about how much?
This isn't a small book and yet i found myself having to slow my reading so i could really enjoy and savor every line of writing. The tale starts with William Gold settling down to recount his past, which as a plot device i think is excellent, it puts the reader immediately into the warm space of being told a story and that for me feels even more real and realistic, the recounting of a history by someone who was there, it brings the whole panorama of the adventure to life.
As with all of Christian Cameron's books there is much going on, many surprises around the corner and so many political machinations that can turn the story, much like life at the time. His characters are very alive and real, imbued with a depth of personality rarely seen in any series. That mix of real personalities fleshed out from the pages of history with a complex personality blended with those imagined and brought to life from the authors deep and intimate knowledge of the time and the culture. While i always love the ain characters like William Gold and Fiore, my favorite in this book has to be John the Turk aka John the Kipchak, a character free from much of the church morailty that mires the rest of the band, he has a simple view of the world that contrasts wonderfully….Ok, there being a Captain Parmenio is also pretty awesome and always a humbling thing, i wonder if there is a record for how many series a character has appeared in? (Captain Parmenio has been in Miles Cameron's red Traitor Son Cycle, Simon Turney's Ottoman Cycle, Christian Cameron's Chivalry series and Tom Swan….honestly, wonderful moments), i've come to love that old rogue.
I personally don't find the Byzantine area/period the most exciting, that could just be the books I've read (there are odd exceptions), and to be honest in this one Christian Cameron only touches on that world briefly, but still he brings it to life in a powerful and exciting way. The massively convoluted politics of the region, the deep schism's that surround the seat of power in Constantinople and the constant striving for that seat of ultimate power. It is a twisted web this writer weaves, but as with all the best tales, no more twisted than the truth.
As always with Christian's stories, every blade, every piece of armour, every rivet is exactingly real, every pain in wearing the armour, every fighting move , every twisted ankle and turn of the wrist has been experienced in some way on the field by the man himself (well ok he hasn't actually stabbed someone… but everything non bloody). Beyond the battle, to the gloves, the clothes, the shoes, the horses, the logistics, every detail is based on experience from his world of living history/ re-enactment. This experience is priceless because of the life and reality it gives the story, these tales are more than blood and battle, they are life in another time, and Chivalry as a series is a love story as much as a tale of honour. I think my favourite description is the gravel underfoot, and how uncomfortable it was, and how much pain it led to, not because of the pain (obviously im not mean) , but because i can imagine at some time the author has experienced it, it was just too personal to have been conjured from nothing, and this is what i mean by the entire book having a startling reality that others do not. Many authors describe what they think something might be like, where Christian Cameron describes what it does feel like.
A couple of years ago it seemed unlikely that we would ever see the Green Count, but now we have a stunningly real book, one of the best Historical fiction titles you will read this year, but as even better news; Chivalry will continue next year with Sword of Justice, William Gold and friends will ride again.
I cannot recommend this book and series highly enough its a must read for Fantasy (if you lived The Traitor Son Cycle you will love this) or Historical fiction readers.
Songs of Blood and Gold (2017) (with Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray, Libbie Hawker, Ben Kane, E Knight, Sophie Perinot, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, Stephanie Thornton, S J A Turney and Russell Whitfield)
1. The Master (2018)
Filed under Christian Cameron, Historical Fiction, Miles Cameron
August 2, 2017 · 11:36 am
Miles Cameron: Fall of Dragons (review)
Christian/ Miles Cameron was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1962. He grew up in Rockport, Massachusetts, Iowa City, Iowa, and Rochester, New York, where he attended McQuaid Jesuit High School and later graduated from the University of Rochester with a degree in history.
After the longest undergraduate degree on record (1980-87), he joined the United States Navy, where he served as an intelligence officer and as a backseater in S-3 Vikings in the First Gulf War, in Somalia, and elsewhere. After a dozen years of service, he became a full time writer in 2000. He lives in Toronto (that's Ontario, in Canada) with his wife Sarah and their daughter Beatrice, currently age seven. He attends the University of Toronto when the gods move him and may eventually have a Masters in Classics, but right now he's a full time historical novelist, and it is the best job in the world.
Christian is a dedicated reenactor and you can follow some of his recreated projects on the Agora. He's always recruiting, so if you'd like to try the ancient world, the medieval world, or the late 18th century, follow the link to contact us.
The Fall of Dragons (2017)
(The fifth book in the Traitor Son Cycle series)
The Red Knight's final battle lies ahead…but there's a whole war still to fight first.
He began with a small company, fighting the dangerous semi-mythical creatures that threatened villages, nunneries and cities. But as his power – and his forces – grew, so the power of the enemy he stood against became ever clearer. Not the power of men…but that of gods, with thousands of mortal allies.
Never has strategy been more important, and this war will end where it started: at Lissen Carak. But to get there means not one battle but many – to take out the seven armies which stand against them and force Ash, the huge black dragon, to finally take to the field himself….
The Traitor Son Cycle has been Miles Cameron's fantasy debut, with so many amazing Historical fiction titles written and read by many proving the quality and power of his writing, for me this was always going to be a case of how good can this get, how can it compare to the many accomplished fantasy series out there, how will the plot cope with the freedom beyond the structure of history?
Miles Cameron has since book one given us an astounding series, one filled with a new and highly intelligent and in-depth magical system, a total world spanning societal structure based on varying real world empires and a code of chivalry that underpins the fighting force of the red Knight, one that we can truly believe, because Christian himself lives this code himself, fights in the amour and knows the history. Most of all it has given us a deeply involved plot that employs all of the research and all of the knowledge of a great writer.
Fall of Dragons is the culmination of this wonderful series, and for me the linchpin of the series, if you fail to tie the knots of a series so full and complex you fail the series. At times Christian/ Miles has cast his net of plot far and wide, sometimes worryingly so, but slowly carefully and with great precision he has pulled those differing views, plots, perspectives and locations together back into the main sort arc, giving a series and book that absorbs you utterly with all its twists and turns. More complex and yet with none of the waffle when compared to series like Game of Thrones, for me this blows away GRRM's work, because it keeps the plot on point, nothing is there just to appear smart, its there for a reason and you can feel the tension mounting as the author takes you on this majestic and massive journey.
Most of all for me, the series had an ending, one that's hugely satisfying and really powerfully done. The author doesn't save himself for a another book or a further series, he powers towards the promised ending and leaps into that void with the reader no character is safe. Couple that with the utterly relentless pace of this book, which is essentially 560 pages of battle , journey to battle, preparation for battle and then more battle…. yet written with true heart and passion, taking account of the lives and travails of all involved, lost and celebrated in this war to end all wars.
I cant give this any higher recommendation…. i doff my cap sir!!
7. Tom Swan and the Siege of Belgrade: Part Seven(2015)
Filed under Christian Cameron, Fantasy, Miles Cameron
Miles Cameron : A Plague of Swords (Review)
A pseudonym used by Christian Cameron
(Photo with permission from Cole Cioran)
Miles Cameron is an author, a re-enactor, an outdoors expert and a weapons specialist. He lives, works and writes in Toronto, where he lives with his family.
Buy a Signed Limited Edition
One enemy has fallen. A greater one remains.
Now it's war.
With one army defeated in a victory that will be remembered through the ages, now the Red Knight must fight again.
For every one of his allies, there is a corresponding enemy. Spread across different lands and on sea, it will all come down to one last gamble. And to whether or not the Red Knight has guessed the foe's true intentions.
With each throw of the dice, everything could be lost.
I find these days with Miles/ Christian Cameron books i have to start a review will full disclosure, admit to the fact that he is a friend and someone i admire for his writing, his many many skills (weapons and much much more) and intelligence (that said… if the book was bad i would honestly tell him). In fact its often that intelligence in the books that so captivates me. He is that rare author who can educate and entertain at the same time and he seems to do it effortlessly. Although i do admit to that fact that when i read the books, i can hear Christians voice, not the sound, but the nuances, and it manages to make me feel like the class dumbo, worse than when sat across the table from him… but i learn and for that… well how can i be anything but appreciative, there are also times when the character uses a turn of phrase and its like he is there in the room. I'm not sure if the characters are assuming his personality or he is assuming theirs. But ultimately it shows how involved he is in the whole writing process (just look at the photo on this blog… he is the Red Knight), and the combination makes for such a great book.
Lets get the summary out of the way, The book is excellent, it doesn't have anything of a middle book or a pre-end of series book. It has quite simple jumped to the top of my book of the year pile (the only reason Rage of Ares isn't already in that spot is because i have to let someone else win the book of the year .. Or Christian Would walk off with it every year… yes yes i know Miles is Christian… but its a fairly new genre for him after all.).
A Plague of Swords see's Christian utilise every skill at his disposal, but i think most of all his analytical and intelligence officers skills. The Book goes above and beyond the average writers skill to manipulate the reader into following the narrative while the pieces of the puzzle are slowly turned, revealing only at the last moment a situation of victory or disaster. The author is often there to have his main character admit "I make mistakes", again with the moments when i can hear Christian in the character. The Red Knight isn't an all round super good guy, he is vain, he is arrogant, he basically has all the expected human vices and more because he is a man at the forefront of power and he revels in it, and hates it, because he cares about his people too much. Its the deeper emotions and motives of his main character where again Christian comes out, but also where i think his own reading comes out, flashes of authors like the great David Gemmell. The Author is a man who lives and writes his experiences. He knows the fighting, but more than that he knows the logistics, the clothes, dancing, the everyday life that the people in this book would have… the only true mystery is the magic, and he has created such a depth of magic system that it is truly breath taking when you sit back an examine it, you can tell he has tried to pick any holes in it and closed everything he could to make it as realistic as possible, for magic it feels real.
This for me shows up so many "Epic Fantasy" series, there are no Tom Bombadil wasted moments, pointless characters or devices, everything has a purpose and an end game, even if it takes more than one book to discover it, and there are so many more threads and exciting moments to come. (although finding Capitano Parmenio in this book was blooming exciting)
This truly for me is the pinnacle of fantasy writing. And the ultimate in Fantasy/ Historical fiction cross over… the blending of genres is completed in this series.
Book of the Year…. unless someone can pull a rabbit out of the hat in the coming weeks.
Christian Cameron: Rage of Ares (review)
Christian Cameron (1962 – )
Rage of Ares (2016)
(The sixth book in the Long War series)
Arimnestos of Plataea was one of the heroes of the Battle of Marathon, in which the heroic Greeks halted the invading Persians in their tracks, and fought in the equally celebrated naval battle at Salamis.
But even these stunning victories only served to buy the Greeks time, as the Persians gathered a new army, returning with overwhelming force to strike the final killing blow.
For the Greeks, divided and outnumbered, there was only one possible strategy: attack. And so, in the blazing summer of 479 BC, Arimnestos took up his spear one final time at the Battle of Plataea.
I could apologise in advance for any fan boy nature that may follow in the rest of this review….. but i wont, the book is just excellent, so it deserves it.
This is the sixth and (for now) final book in the Long War series. The book is about the build up to the battle at Plataea, and also near Lade, but more it is about the people of Greece and how their way of life survived by the skin of its teeth. As always Christian provides a careful educational and entertaining approach to the battle, mixing daily life and frustrations with the machinations of power and the repeated points of near disaster for the Greeks. Highlighting just how balanced the whole war was, as he often states, the war is won by the side who makes the least mistakes.
Rage of Ares is in many ways not just the culmination of the Long war but also of the character Arimenestos. Throughout the series he has grown as a character, his trials have taught him and hardened him, they have given him a depth of character and personality, shaped his prowess on the battlefield and formed his friendships and social status, provided the core of the small Plataean fleet and the backbone of its taxeis. So that in time for the last battle, he is the trusted go between for the key nations (Athens and Sparta), allowing him to provide that roving view of the battle field, to be at both battles, and to also take part and provide an intimate view of the scale and feel of the battles. It feels like a perfectly spun story arc that has finally come to fruition.
By the end of the book the emotions are pulled as taut as possible, i have to admit to having become invested in Ari as a character over the last 6 years, but i still didn't expect that the final book would hit so hard, this i have to credit to the authors concept of writing style, making you the reader one of the audience at his family get together, it reads like a fireside tale because its told that way, a great epic tale of life and history told at the feet of the man himself. Woven into this style is the author himself, having been lucky enough to sit and chat with him you can see the nuances of his style of speech and mannerisms in the book and in Arimenestos. A book filled with battles, blood, action, politics, family, friendship, comradeship, craftsmanship, statesmanship… the list of areas used to entertain and educate is just breathtaking.
What we have in this book and this series is a powerfully emotional story told in a way that is not only imaginative and entertaining but it also manages to fully educate the reader in the politics and people of ancient Greece. It is one of the best series i have read and should not be missed, it transcends genre because i truly believe there is something for everyone in this series.
3. Poseiden's Spear (2012)
2.Tom Swan and the Siege of Belgrade: Part Two (2014)
A Song of War (2016) (with Libby Hawker, Kate Quinn,Vicky Alvear Shecter, Stephanie Thornton, S J A Turneyand Russell Whitfield)
3. Dread Wyrm(2014)
Alan Craik
Cauldron of Violence (2000)
The Falconer's Tale (2007)
Song of War (Review)
Kate Quinn is a native of southern California. She attended Boston University, where she earned a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Classical Voice. A lifelong history buff, she has written four novels in the Empress of Rome Saga, and two books in the Italian Renaissance detailing the early years of the infamous Borgia clan. All have been translated into multiple languages.
SJA Turney
I live with my wife, son and daughter, and two (close approximations of) dogs in rural North Yorkshire, where my wife and I both grew up, surrounded by friends and family. A born and bred Yorkshireman with a love of the country, I cannot envisage spending my life anywhere else, though my anchor is sometimes tested as the wanderlust hits and we travel wherever I can find the breathtaking remains of the classical world. I have a love of travel and history, architecture and writing and those four interact well enough to keep me almost permanently busy.
Since leaving school and University, I have tried a great number of careers, including car sales, insurance, software engineering, computer network management, civil service and even paint ing and decorating sales. I have lived in four counties and travelled as widely as time and budget allowed and find myself finally back where I began and finally doing something I love.
Having written a number of unpublished short stories in my early days, I decided back in 2003 to try and write a full length novel. That was the start of Marius' Mules. Being a lover of Roman history, I decided to combine my love of writing and my love of classical history. Marius' Mules was followed two years later by Interregnum, my attempt to create a new fantasy story still with a heavy flavour of Rome. Since then, the success and popularity of both have inflated my head so that I can no longer comfortably fit through doors, and has spawned sequels to each work, with the fantasy trilogy complete, six volumes in the Marius' Mules series, and two books of the Ottoman Cycle quadrilogy now out.
I maintain another website detailing the Roman sites I visit and photograph, and write a blog about books. I am an almost terminally chatty person. That's just a due warning if you feel like contacting me (see above.) I am always happy to speak to people and have put together an FAQ gathered together from things I have been asked previously.
Libbie Hawker
Libbie was born in Rexburg, Idaho and divided her childhood between Eastern Idaho's rural environs and the greater Seattle area. She presently lives in Seattle, but has also been a resident of Salt Lake City, Utah; Bellingham, Washington; and Tacoma, Washington. She loves to write about character and place, and is inspired by the bleak natural beauty of the Rocky Mountain region and by the fascinating history of the Puget Sound.
After three years of trying to break into the publishing industry with her various books under two different pen names, Libbie finally turned her back on the mainstream publishing industry and embraced independent publishing. She now writes her self-published fiction full-time, and enjoys the fact that the writing career she always dreamed of having is fully under her own control.
Libbie's writerly influences are varied, and include Vladimir Nabokov, Hilary Mantel, Annie Dillard, George R. R. Martin, songwriter Neko Case, and mixed-media storyteller Chris Onstad, to name but a few.
She previously wrote under the pen name L.M. Ironside (historical fiction)
I'm a writer and high school history teacher who has been obsessed with infamous women from history since I was twelve.
My first two novels, The Secret History: A Novel of Empress Theodora and Daughter of the Gods: A Novel of Ancient Egypt focus on two of history's forgotten women: Theodora of the Byzantine Empire and Pharaoh Hatshepsut.My third novel and fourth books center around the women who stood behind the greatest conquerors the world has ever seen. The Tiger Queens is the story of Genghis Khan's wifeand daughters, while The Conqueror's Wife tells of the women who both loved and hated Alexander the Great.I recently joined the H Team to help write a collaborative novel, Song of War: A Novel of Troy (Available October 2016) in which I tell the story of Cassandra, King Priam's cursed seer of a daughter.I live with my husband and daughter in Alaska, where I'm at work on my next novel about history's forgotten women.
Vicky Alvear Shecter
When I was a kid, I wanted to be an archaeologist. By the time I entered college, I had forgotten my dreams of digging in the dirt and ended up with a degree possibly even less marketable than archaeology—English. My love for ancient history went underground as I threw myself into a career writing marketing materials for banks, corporations, and tech companies.
I reconnected with my love of the past when I started telling my kids stories about some of Alexander the Great's most outlandish antics. They started asking for more, so I wrote a kid's biography on that crazy character and in 2006, Alexander the Great Rocks the World was born. The book was well received and was named a VOYA Honor Book for nonfiction and to the list of "25 Books all Georgia Children Should Read" by the Georgia Center for the Book. In 2010, my biography of Cleopatra—Cleopatra Rules! The Amazing Life of the Original Teen Queen—was released and was similarly well received.
In 2011, I moved into young adult historical fiction with the release of Cleopatra's Moon(Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic), named one of the best books of 2012 by the Center for Children's Literature. The novel is a coming of age story of Cleopatra's real-life daughter, Selene, and offers a glimpse of both Egypt and Rome during the latter's transition into the age of Empire. The novel earned excellent reviews in Publisher's Weekly, The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times, and other national outlets, including Atlanticonline and EW online.
My latest young adult novel, Curses and Smoke: A Novel of Pompeii (May 2014), tells of the story of two teens in the weeks leading up to the eruption. Publisher's Weekly said the novel "makes clever use of the historical eruption to give her tragic climax a bitterly ironic twist." Kirkus said, "the eruption engenders considerable tension as the lovers try to escape."
In 2013, my midgrade series on mythology—Secrets of the Ancient Gods— was released by Boyds Mills Press. School Library Journal called the first book in the series—Anubis Speaks! A Guide to the Afterworld by the Egyptian God of the Dead—"wickedly funny" and "chock full of interesting information." It was a Cybils Award Finalist for midgrade nonfiction. The second in the series, Hades Speaks! A Guide to the Underworld by the Greek God of the Dead releases October 2014. And Thor Speaks! A Guide to the Norse Realms by the Viking God of Thunder releases in 2015.
For nearly a decade I have served as a docent at the Michael C. Carlos Museum of Antiquities at Emory University where I get to share my passion for ancient history with visiting school kids. Few things make me happier than showing off our Egyptian mummies and breathtaking classical statues.
Russell Whitfield was born in Shepherds Bush in 1971. An only child, he was raised in Hounslow, West London, but has since escaped to Ham in Surrey.
Russell has had an (almost) life long fascination with ancient Greece and Rome, sparked by seeing the The Three Hundred Spartans on ITV in the seventies. Educated to A-Level, he did not complete college, preferring instead to seek fame and fortune in a heavy metal band. Sadly, fame and fortune were not forthcoming and a career in telesales beckoned. A series of jobs followed culminating in the heady heights of 'content editor' for a large multi-national.
Gladiatrix was Russ's first novel, published in 2008 by Myrmidon Books. The sequel, Roma Victrix, continues the adventures Lysandra, the Spartan gladiatrix, and a third book, Imperatrix, sees Lysandra stepping out of the arena and onto the field of battle.
Heavy Metal is Russ's music of choice, though he was also in a goth band and thus has the obligatory Sisters of Mercy and Mission CD's in his collection.
He is a huge fan of the Swedish band Hysterica and has written a song for their forthcoming album The Art of Metal.
Troy: city of gold, gatekeeper of the east, haven of the god-born and the lucky, a city destined to last a thousand years. But the Fates have other plans—the Fates, and a woman named Helen. In the shadow of Troy's gates, all must be reborn in the greatest war of the ancient world: slaves and queens, heroes and cowards, seers and kings . . . and these are their stories.
A young princess and an embittered prince join forces to prevent a fatal elopement.
A tormented seeress challenges the gods themselves to save her city from the impending disaster.
A tragedy-haunted king battles private demons and envious rivals as the siege grinds on.
A captured slave girl seizes the reins of her future as two mighty heroes meet in an epic duel.
A grizzled archer and a desperate Amazon risk their lives to avenge their dead.
A trickster conceives the greatest trick of all.
A goddess' son battles to save the spirit of Troy even as the walls are breached in fire and blood.
Seven authors bring to life the epic tale of the Trojan War: its heroes, its villains, its survivors, its dead. Who will lie forgotten in the embers, and who will rise to shape the bloody dawn of a new age?
I thought initially when i reviewed this book that i would review it based on each authors song, their tone, tenor, base etc.. how their voice echoed the tone of the people and the time. But then as i read it i saw very quickly that this team had blended their voices perfectly into a perfect harmonic whole, a song of Troy, making it difficult to individualize one over the other.
The whole book feels immensely personal as we join individual characters taken from the pages of the Iliad and given life, and not just the template life of the Iliad but complex interacting real characters dealing with the minutia of life as well as the heroic and sickening deeds of battle.
I would suspect that many would be waiting for me to call out and laud Christian Cameron's (as i'm a known fan), story as my fav in the book, but to be honest everyone created their own immensely real characters that i can only go with my fav character from the tale and that is Odysseus, oddly he is probably the nerd of the bunch and i love the fighting. But he is the brains not the brawn, and he has always felt to me to have so many more levels than the other characters, and i'm always drawn to him because his tale never ends at Troy…. Special mention does also go to Simon Turney though, the end song, this one had to pull all the final threads together, and allowed him to end with the lead into the tale of the Aeneid with its founding of Rome and his great passion, (something he managed with great skill).
For a story that we all know so well, to find that its told in a way that leaves you on the edge of your seat throughout wondering if something might change, if Cassandra might be believed, as the passion and madness of her character race across the page, to… would Aeneas be able to save someone in the destruction of Troy, Or could it be avoided if Hector and Achilles find a way to walk away from a fight…and so much more, this speaks volumes of the ability of all the writers in this group.
What ever it is for you and on what ever level it works for you, for me the Tale has ended, the songs are done, but this book joins some of the great tales of Troy, and the notes of Troy's song will continue to echo through eternity when writers of passion and skill enthrall readers in this way.
Filed under Christian Cameron, Historical Fiction, S J A Turney, Uncategorized


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Journal of Creation (formerly TJ) 10(2):172–173, August 1996
'Lost World of Mutants' discovered
by Carl Wieland
In 1986, construction workers unexpectedly drilled into the Movile Cave, close to the western (Romanian) coast of the Black Sea. A 'secret kingdom of strange creatures' was revealed—a group of living things that have clearly been cut off from the outside world for many generations. They are found in air-pockets which can only be reached by diving. Forty-seven species altogether have been studied by a Romanian scientist, Serban Sarbu, who escaped the communist dictatorship and has only recently been able to resume his work. They include such things as spiders, leeches, millipedes, pill bugs, flatworms, mites, beetles, and water dwellers such as water scorpions and nematode worms.
The unique thing about the ecosystem within which these creatures function is that they do not depend, even indirectly, on the energy of sunlight. The entire community appears to be fueled by energy from the metabolism of hydrogen sulfide (the foul-smelling 'rotten egg gas,' H2S), carried out by dense mats of bacteria which live on the cave walls. These bacteria produce sulphuric acid, which incidentally carves out increasing volumes of space in the limestone.
The bacteria are eaten by creatures higher on the 'food chain' which are then eaten by others, and so on. There is no photosynthetic vegetation at all.
Air can seep in through tiny fissures, but the atmosphere is very different from outside, with 100 times as much CO2, one tenth the level of oxygen, and a lot of H2S, produced by natural sulfur springs. The animals scuttle for cover when they detect a change in oxygen levels.
All of them have the condition known as troglomorphy—a loss of coloring pigment, giving them a pale-yellow appearance. All are born blind, with the exception of one spider that is born with the usual eight eyes. However, these degenerate as it matures, so that it is blind as an adult.
Many have large antennae which assist them to find their way around in the dark.
A creationist understanding
The obvious explanation would be similar to the standard evolutionary interpretation, except for the time-scale. Genetic loss through mutation is an integral part of the creation model, whereas molecules-to-man evolution requires huge volumes of new, functionally more complex information to arise.
It is important to understand that the loss of characters such as eyes and pigment does not arise from disuse as such, although most of the public will surely see it in such Lamarckian terms. (Modern biologists, whether creationist or evolutionist, overwhelmingly disown such beliefs. The giraffe's neck cannot get progressively longer from stretching over generations, nor shorter from lack of stretching.) Use and disuse do not cause changes which can be inherited—that is, there is no change in the DNA code as a result of use and disuse of bodily parts.
Let's look at the likely course of events.
Loss of pigment
Many cave dwellers have long been known to show this. If a creature living in the normal, outside world were to have a mutation causing a loss of its pigment, it would normally be less able to survive, losing some protection against sunlight. However, in a cave without the sun, such a mutation can readily spread through the population.
These recently-discovered Romanian creatures are thus almost certainly the descendants of previously pigmented ancestors cut off from the outside perhaps thousands of years ago (not 5 million, as evolutionists speculate in this instance).
Loss of eyes
Blind fish, with scars where eyes normally appear, have long been known to exist in certain caves. A mutant gene damaging the genetic information for eye manufacture would have no selection pressure opposing its spread in a lightless environment. In addition, there may well be a selective advantage to such a loss/defect, as follows.
Eyes are complex structures, prone to disease and injury. If a fish with eyes bumped into a cave wall in the dark, it could damage the eye surface, introducing infection leading to death. The acidic environment would also be detrimental to eye health. After many hundreds of generations, the eyeless gene would confer a slight but significant selective advantage. In the thousands of years since the Flood, the Romanian cave-dwelling creatures have had time to go through a huge number of their short generational life cycles, allowing them plenty of time for maximum adaptation to their new environment. This adaptation is based, however, on:
the original created information, and
adaptive losses/defects from mutation since creation.
Large antennae
What about the huge, sensitive feelers some of these creatures apparently have? These are clearly adaptive to their dark environment. In addition, there are probably a host of other specialized features which have not yet been described, as so far only newspaper reports (admittedly quite detailed) of conferences have been available to us.
Creationists would generally claim that it is vanishingly improbable that completely new biological apparati involving teleonomy (project-oriented functional complexity) will ever arise de novo from natural law—that is, chance copying mistakes/mutations in the first instance, to be subject to the filter of natural selection.
A population may respond to environmental selection pressure based on information already present in its total gene pool. For instance, if a population of plants in a moist environment is exposed to ever-increasing dryness, only those plants carrying genes for deeper roots and waxier cuticles will survive. The population will have 'responded' and become 'adapted,' but only because the genetic information coding for waxier cuticles and deeper roots was already present.
Therefore, a reasonable postulate regarding any of the adaptive features of these cave creatures is that:
they are indeed the descendants of similar creatures from the 'outside' which became trapped (perhaps progressively) and cut off from the parent population; and
they already had the genetic information for feelers/antennae.
Individuals which (rarely) inherited the combination of genes for oversize feelers would be at a disadvantage 'outside,' but would be selected for in this world of darkness. Perhaps a mutational defect involving a loss of control (or loss of 'switch-off' of growth) of feeler size during development might have been involved in at least some, leading to gigantism in an existing structure, which is inherited.
There is clearly no way in which, and no need to postulate that, these feelers themselves, with all their complex associated sensory and control mechanisms, arose by mutation in creatures which previously had no such information in their genes.
The ecosystem
Creationists sometimes point to complex predator-prey relationships, food chains, etc., as examples of creative design. While this is certainly feasible in many cases, even likely, it appears unlikely that the particular food chain in this case was the direct result of original creative design; at least, not created for that purpose. Rather, it probably arose as a result of each member being forced to survive on what it could, an adaptation (of an earlier ecosystem) based on necessity.
Complex information is never seen to arise from natural law, although that is the very core claim of evolution. These Romanian cave creatures show no evidence of having 'evolved' such information. However, they can indeed be described as 'strange mutants'—the offspring of non-cave-dwellers which demonstrate the results of selection and degenerative change, not upward evolution.
Daily Mail, London, 15 February, 1996.
The Times, London, 14 February, 1996, p. 6.
Daily Express, London, 15 February, 1996, p. 14.
The Independent, London, 14 February, 1996, p. 1.
The amazing cave people of Malta

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
        The protection of privacy, a challenge these days:

What are we doing today to preserve our privacy in this new digital world? We read social networks such as Facebook or Google+ more without moderation.

And we are posting our moods and other stuff without worrying about what will happen to our data, in the near future but also in the more distant future!

Also, it appears that our practices on social networks are security challenges of tomorrow: I invite you to watch this video or a security expert (Mikko Hyppönen at USI – OCTO Technology), explains these issues. Take a few minutes to look at is quite edifying!

There was a time, where all electronic devices did not exist! How we were doing then? We went to the cafe, or in a public place to meet people, our friends, our acquaintances.

Today the situation has completely changed! With the proliferation of electronic
    applications on media such as telephone or tablets but also personal computers, without extent, we are
    posting our moods if we had a good night, or if we butt itch!

Everything is an artifact to be posted, and we are so happy to share such important things in the whole world!

But in the pre digital age, would we have done that? I think not! Today when we post publicly on Facebook, we ask if we would be willing to go to the village square, and with a megaphone, say we had a bad night for example.

        Some facts:

The first thing appears: the Internet of the majors are now building an IT model, whose ultimate goal is to collect
    our
    data. To shape our person, and thus sell tailored advertising. You think I'm paranoid? So let's look at this a little closer:

Google built "data center" on the planet.

Facebook buys WhatsApp for $ 22 million, with the ultimate goal to correlate your Facebook profile
        with a phone
        number. Facebook has not purchased the application, they bought the data, that is to say, our
        phone number.

Twitter, Facebook Google still without the triumvirate of these practices, but they are not alone!

The statements are the first to hack our private data, all in order to protect us of course.

I think businesses are there to make
    money it is their goal. They can not survive without money, and thus repay us our wages. So when she can do so
    without pain for us, they do it! All because of the "I Agree syndrome".

Who takes the time to read the Terms and Conditions applications? Nobody actually somehow you have already paid for
    the software, and especially for those that are free. You no longer have a choice!

I think there is no fate, and that alternatives may exist and even should have to exist. So I invite you to join
    forces with mine, and be ready for change!

With IT professional for over 15 years, other models may exist. Take for example peer-to-peer
    model: a long time ago used to share music film also often hacked!

Why not put it to good use model for our data exchanges on social networks? After all our private data do not
    necessarily have to pass on third-party
    servers, set up in the cloud, and we don't know where they are! Google Facebook and other know where are our data, we are the involuntary clients of these  profiling practices.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Following his halftime performance, Bruno Mars' sales are up and, as always, the record companies win.
Super Bowl Sunday came and went, but people are still talking about pop star Bruno Mars. Why? Because he took center stage during the halftime show, reaching an audience upwards of 100 million, and gained exposure to people entirely outside of his demographic. And yet, according to Time.com, the singer didn't receive a single penny for his performance.
This is actually nothing new. No one's ever been paid for the halftime show. Not Michael Jackson. Not Paul McCartney. And though Mars got 12 uninterrupted minutes in front of the largest U.S. audience anyone is ever likely to get (save for a few awkward moments with the Red Hot Chili Peppers — what was that about?), the whole thing smells of the same excuse given to artists over and over again. "Do it for the exposure, kid." Or, "Don't you know art isn't worth money?" You'd think with millions of dollars being spent on ads, the NFL could afford to shell out something to halftime performers.
Though the whole idea of insisting an artist work for free might not pass the sniff test, this might be one of the few occasions where "exposure" actually translates to moola. In fact, there's no "might" about it. Time and time again, in Super Bowl after Super Bowl, halftime performers have seen a significant uptick in sales in the days following the game.
Last year, Beyonce brought in 104 million viewers and saw a 40% increase in sales in the week following the Super Bowl. The year before, Madonna performed for an audience of 112.5 million viewers and 10 of her digital hits saw a sales increase of 1,700%, collectively.
This isn't a recent phenomenon, either. In fact, since halftime shows with major musical acts have been a thing, sales for the artists have increased. Take for instance The Who. The iconic rock band performed in 2010 and their Greatest Hits album saw a 50% increase in sales as a result.
Going all the way back to 1993 when Michael Jackson dominated the halftime stage, his album Dangerous saw a sales increase of 83%. And in 1996, Diana Ross experienced a 74% sales increase after her performance. We could go on, but you get the idea. A chance at performing during the Super Bowl means big bucks for the record companies behind these artists.
So, how did Bruno Mars fair? He did well. Really well. Not only did he manage to pull in 115.3 million viewers to make his the most watched Super Bowl halftime show ever, the performance also elevated his album sales 164%. His latest, Unorthodox Jukebox, claimed the top spot on the iTunes Top Albums chart with his debut album bumping up to the No. 3 spot and remix versions of those two albums sitting pretty at positions 8 and 17.
Individual tracks are doing great, too, with his hit "Locked Out of Heaven" claiming the sixth spot on the iTunes Top Songs chart and "Just the Way Your Are" at No. 7. According to Mashable, the singer's ticket sales for his "Moonshine Jungle World Tour" skyrocketed as well.
Bruno Mars is definitely one of the most contemporary choices the NFL has made, but it definitely seems to have been a smart move. Viewership was up -- despite the fact the game was hardly a nail-biter -- and record sales went through the roof. Mars' label, Atlantic Records, and rivals in the industry are likely already plotting to get their acts on stage for next year's big game.
Brenda Barron offers insights and analysis of the latest news in The Business at The Motley Fool. You can follow her on Twitter @digitalinkwell.


Self Description: I am sociable, goal-oriented and well-balanced. I like and treasure home comfort. I trust people and I hate lies. I am not able to offend and will never let my close people suffer. I think that the main thing in life is family. I like to play with my youngest son and see how he develops and grows up.
Comments: I am looking for a decent, well-mannered, reliable and loving man who wants to become a reliable and stable life partner. I do not care much about your social and material status. The main things are your personal attitude to relationship and family, your abilities to keep harmony and good spirit in your house, your honesty and humanity.


In Northern Maine, on Route Eleven along the East Branch of the Penobscot River, resting in the quiet forest among tall pines, hemlock, and oak trees, sits a rustic log home hand crafted by the artist himself.
It is from this seasonal environment along one of the great rivers of Maine that Donald gets his inspiration to create his one of kind works of art.
Some bowls are crafted from burls, while others are made from large blocks of wood. Each bowl is hand crafted, no lath is used in the process for making the bowl. Sometimes taking weeks or months to create each bowl.
Donald hopes you enjoy your work of art, and pass it on for many generations.
Thank you from North Star Studio.


OCO's board drives the Ontario Organic Strategic Plan, providing oversight and direction to OCO staff. The board is made up of a mix of industry and at-large representatives. Board members serve a two-year term and are voted in by OCO members within their industry category every two years. At-large members are voted on by all member categories. Elections take place amongst members in good standing at the annual AGM. The Executive Committee (President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer) is then elected from within the elected board.
Board seats are allocated in proportion to OCO's membership and value chain make-up and will be re-evaluated every few years. Members are encouraged to bring forward issues at any time and may participate in working group as issues arise.
For a list of committee chairs, please see our Committees and Working Groups page.
For a list of past board members, please see our Board Archives page.
*The board shall seek at least one uncertified, ecological producer to be on the Board at all times.
**No member shall be elected to serve as director on the Board representing in an official capacity any one certifying body.
Rob is the Organic Specialist for Thompsons Limited and a Certified Crop Advisor (CCA-ON). Prior to that he operated a mixed farm, selling certified organic vegetables to consumers, retailers, and chefs in the Ottawa area, and worked as a consultant in the organic sector, including over 13 years on the Member Relations Team of the Organic Meadow Co-operative, providing extension services to organic and transitional-organic farmers across Ontario. He is an IOIA-trained organic inspector, has volunteered on the Livestock Working Group of the CGSB Technical Committee on Organic Standards since 2008, sits on the Organic Value Chain Round Table, and is an elected member of the Organic Standards Interpretation Committee.
Bill is the founder of Southbrook Vineyards, and has been a proud farmer all his life. Southbrook has been certified organic since 2008 and has been leading the push towards quality organic and biodynamic wine since that time. Southbrook's particular aim has been to grow the organic wine sector.
Sarah Grant has worked with organic and non-organic farmers and processors across Canada and in Sub-Saharan Africa. In Africa she worked with Organic crop exporters, to help them increase access to markets and improve the efficiency of their internal operations. In Canada, she's the Director of Partnerships with Localize, a food company that works with food retailers, producers and processors to help consumers better understand the story behind their food. She hopes her experiences can be used to help improve OCO's membership process, develop an online directory and generally develop a more data driven approach for the benefit of members, the organic sector in Ontario as well as enhance OCO's ability to support the sector.
Joel is an Organic Certification Officer with Ecocert Canada, has a degree in Agriculture Science, and a Master in Capacity Development and Extension from the University of Guelph. He has been working in the organic sector as a researcher, inspector, certification officer and consultant for the last eight years, and is a member of the board in the Supporter representing his consulting business, Local Food Finder.
Simon is an Inspector and Input Review Officer for EcoCert Canada. He also farms 120 acres of organic field crops, and owns an organic mushroom compost business. Simon is deeply knowledgeable of Canada's Organic Standards, and has a particular interest in the Organic Standards as they relate to crop inputs. He has participated in the OFC's recent Standards Review Process in the "Permitted Substances List; Crops" working group, with the aim of making the Canadian Organic Standards more sustainable.
Andrew's family farm has been certified organic since 1999. He recently took over farming it himself in 2013 and has been slowly expanding his land base by renting and transitioning additional land. It is a mixed farm with a small cow/calf herd and cash cropping opration. Andrew grew up working for a large organic cash crop farmer where he learned much of what he knows today about organic agriculture. This has led him to pursue a career in organics, and he now manages the Organic business unit for Beechwood Agri Services, in addition to farming.
Krysten Cooper is the Director of Corporate Strategy and Sustainability at Yorkshire Valley Farms, a leading Ontario producer of organic poultry. As part of her role, she is focused on business development, education and outreach, and creating links throughout the organic value chain from producer to consumer. Her work requires her to be well-versed in the organic standards, to understand the political and cultural climate that influences organics, and to be an engaged member of the organic community. Krysten is keen to support OCO's goals of growing organic supply in Ontario, and ensuring the promotion and protection of the organic claim for Ontario-grown products.
Roman Plawiuk is Owner & Operator of Huron Sun Foods. He is a producer and distributor of certified organic sunflower oil based in Barrie, Ontario. He has a background in business development, product management and marketing. Roman believes in the importance of growing organic foods in Ontario and encouraging food producers to incorporate locally grown organic ingredients.
With his wife Kristine, Thorsten has owned Persephone Market Garden since 2009. Since 2015, he participated in building food distribution co-operative Eat Local Grey Bruce, an emerging food distribution co-operative that sells local food, supplemented with non-local, organic products. His roles have included business planning, general manager, and now planning expansion scenarios. Thorsten holds a PhD in Agriculture. Thorsten also represents non-certified (ecological) producers on the OCO board.
David is a strong supporter of exceptionally flavourful, consistently available, and nutrient dense foods which are most effectively provided by local organic growers. He has been a marketing and business consultant for organic producers for seven years, prior to which he spent 23 years as a successful mid-scale vegetable and greenhouse producer and marketer, seven years as a columnist for the Globe & Mail on alternative agriculture, and seven years as a chef. His decades of researching, experiencing, teaching, and leading have been recognized by a Governor General's Award for Stewardship and Sustainability.
Catriona Ffrench is part owner of Cookstown Greens and as such is involved with the production, merchandising, and marketing aspects of the business. Cookstown grows, packages, and markets certified organic vegetables to retail stores. Through running store demos and farm tours, Catriona can see how much information there is about organic farming that is not understood by consumers. She believes more education is needed to promote local, organic produce, and supports OCO's efforts to encourage regulation of the use of the term, "organic" in Ontario.


text:
Az Ezek a fiatalok... 1967-ben Banovich Tamás rendezésével készült fekete-fehér, magyar zenés film, mely a MAFILM 4. Játékfilmstúdióban készült. A balatonlellei kertmoziban mutatták be először, 1967 nyarán. A film dalairól nagylemezt is kiadtak.

Az Ezek a fiatalok naiv, banális története szóra sem érdemes. A film nyilvánvalóan nem is a történetmesélés kedvéért készült, hanem a sztori lehetőséget adott az első magyar beatzene-film megszületésének. Az Illés együttes eredeti dalai (mellette egy-egy számmal a Metró és az Omega) tehetségükkel és jókedvű frissességükkel nem a magyar filmtörténetet, hanem a magyar rock- (beat)-zene történetet alapozták meg.

Szereplők

A filmben szereplő dalok

A címek mögött zárójelben a dalszerző szerepel.

 Bolond lány (Szörényi Levente)
 Eljöttél (Szörényi Levente)
 Tarara-dam (Szörényi Levente)
 Fáradt vagyok (Szörényi Levente)
 Láss, ne csak nézz (Szörényi Levente)
 Sárga rózsa (Szörényi Levente)
 Néma szerelem (Szörényi Levente)
 Ez az a ház (Illés Lajos)
 Szőke Anni balladája (Illés Lajos)
 Mostanában bármit teszünk (Sztevanovity Zorán)
 Mr. Alkohol (Szörényi Szabolcs)
 Gyémány és arany (Schöck Ottó)

Szöveg: Bródy János, Sztevanovity Dusán.

A dalokat előadja az Illés zenekar, a Metro együttes, az Omega együttes, Koncz Zsuzsa, Zalatnay Sarolta és Oroszi Péter.

Források

 Ignácz Ádám - Ezek a fiatalok (1967) / Az első magyar beatfilm szerepe a szocialista Magyarország könnyűzenei életében 2000 - Irodalmi és Társadalmi havi lap, 2013.10.11.

1967 filmjei
Magyar zenés filmek
Magyar musicalfilmek
Magyar filmvígjátékok
Fekete-fehér filmek
MOKÉP-filmek

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
ACCEPTED

#### According to
Index Fungorum

#### Published in
null

#### Original name
Zukalia inermis Rehm

### Remarks
null


text:
Home / Journal of Coordination Chemistry, Volume 71, Numbers 11-13
Nanotubes from misfit layered compounds
Authors: Serra, Marco; Tenne, Reshef
Source: Journal of Coordination Chemistry, Volume 71, Numbers 11-13, 3 July 2018, pp. 1669-1678(10)
Publisher: Taylor and Francis Ltd
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00958972.2018.1485019
First, the mechanisms leading to the formation of nanotubes from layered (2-D) materials are briefly discussed. Two main mechanisms are evoked: (1) The asymmetry of the layer along the c-axis, which leads to spontaneous folding, as revealed first by Pauling in 1930; (2) The seaming of the layer due to the abundance of dangling bonds in the rim atoms of the 2-D nanoclusters. This mechanism was discussed first in connection with carbon fullerenes and carbon nanotubes, some 30 years ago and was further extended to inorganic 2-D materials in 1992. In the second part of this work, the formation mechanism of nanotubes from misfit layered compounds (MLC) is deliberated. Here, the two forces are shown to work in synergy leading to facile formation of nanotubes from ternary misfit compounds. This synergy is demonstrated through the versatile chemistry, which has been employed to synthesize MLC nanotubes. Furthering in complexity, few recent examples of nanotubes from quaternary chalcogenide-based MLC are briefly discussed.
Keywords: 2-D materials; Inorganic nanotubes; misfit layered compounds; nanomaterials
Affiliations: Department of Materials and Interfaces, Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel
Publication date: July 3, 2018


While working generally refers to performing tasks for compensation, we look at work as the ability to be productive in a variety environments, including competitive employment. Productivity is defined as participation in purposeful and meaningful experiences including, but not limited to, work, volunteerism, personal development, etc. Through this participation we are viewed as contributing to, not burdening society. The resources presented here were designed with the intention of illustrating person centered philosophy in action, by providing support and tools to facilitate conversations which will impact the development and implementation of person centered planning.


Members of the Fulcrum staff run down personal accounts of how mental health has affected them.
Although telling a first-year student who can barely take care of themselves to get a plant may seem odd, there is a simple reason for it—plants have many benefits, and act as more than just cute dorm decorations. This was something that over 50 students learned about at Community Life Service's (CLS) Green Festival Indoor Plant Workshop, run by the University of Ottawa's Health Services (UOHS) on March 2.


text:
Ferguson cops beat innocent man, then charged him with bleeding on their uniforms
Published time: 15 Aug, 2014 18:33 Edited time: 7 Aug, 2015 06:11
Police take up position to control demonstrators who were protesting the killing of teenager Michael Brown on August 12, 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri. (AFP Photo / Getty Images / Scott Olson) © AFP
The officer-involved shooting death of teenager Michael Brown this week and the subsequent protests across the United States have rekindled interest in another case of alleged excessive force blamed on the Ferguson, Missouri Police Department.
Nearly four years to the day before Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson opened fire and killed Brown, 18, a complaint filed in federal court accused the same law enforcement agency of violating the civil rights of a man who says he was badly beaten after being wrongly arrested, then later charged with "destruction of property" for bleeding on the uniforms of the cops alleged to have injured him.
On Friday, Michael Daly of The Daily Beast recounted the case of Henry Davis, an African-American welder who tried to sue the City of Ferguson after an autumn 2009 altercation with the same police department currently making headlines for the high-profile killing of Brown.
Davis, Daly recalled, was arrested on September 20, 2009 when a Ferguson cop mistook him for a man with the same first and last name wanted on an outstanding warrant. Davis was brought to the Police Department headquarters and told to spend the night in the same one-bed cell occupied by another individual. When he objected and asked for a sleeping mat of his own, his attorneys wrote, the officers got violent.
Officer John Beaird, the complaint reads, "called other officers to the area outside the cell and told the other officers that Plaintiff was being belligerent and failing to comply with his orders." Five cops were soon in the area and, according to the suit, Officer Michael White charged Davis, grabbed him and then slammed him into a wall.
"A female police officer got on Plaintiff's back and handcuffed Plaintiff with Plaintiff's arms behind his back and lying on his stomach," the complaint continues. "Just before Plaintiff was picked up to his feet, Defendant White rushed in the cell a second time and kicked Plaintiff in the head while Plaintiff was lying on the floor and handcuffed with his arms behind his back."
"He ran in and kicked me in the head," Davis recalled, according to The Daily Beast. "I almost passed out at that point… Paramedics came… They said it was too much blood, I had to go to the hospital."
The detainee didn't get help there, however, because he refused treatment unless the hospital staff would first photograph his injuries.
"I wanted a witness and proof of what they done to me," Davis said, according to the website.
Instead, he was taken back to the jail, where he remained for several days until he could post $1,500 bond related to four counts of "property damage." In a signed complaint, Daly wrote, Officer Beaird said David bled on his own uniform and those of three others officers.
When the issue was ultimately brought up during legal proceedings pertaining to the civil suit filed by Davis, Officers Christopher Pillarick, Beaird and White all denied getting blood on their outfits, the Beast reported.
"The contradictions between the complaint and the depositions apparently are what prompted the prosecutor to drop the 'property damage' allegation," Daly wrote this week. "The prosecutor also dropped a felony charge of assault on an officer that had been lodged more than a year after the incident and shortly after Davis filed his civil suit."
That same suit compelled the Ferguson Police Department to produce surveillance camera footage from the alleged altercation, but the cops failed to properly save the clip, James Schottel, the plaintiff's lawyer, told Daly this week. Furthermore, the attorney explained that his efforts to obtain the use-of-force history for the officers involved proved futile when he became aware that reports involving non-fatal altercations were absent from all officers' personnel files, per departmental policy.
"On Friday, police finally identified the officer as Darren Wilson, who is said to have no disciplinary record, as such records are kept in Ferguson," Daly wrote this week. "We already know that he started out at a time when it was accepted for a Ferguson cop to charge somebody with property damage for bleeding on his uniform and later saying there was no blood on him at all."
According to court papers obtained by RT, Magistrate Judge Nannette A. Baker ruled late last year in favor the city, halting Davis' efforts to sue the city for multiple alleged violations of his civil rights. His attorneys filed a notice of appeal in March, and the case is currently slated to be considered later this year by the Eight Circuit Court of Appeals.
"Appellant presented a submissible case of excessive force and Missouri state law assault and battery and respectfully requests this Honorable Court to reverse the district court's judgment of dismissal of Appellant's excessive force and Missouri state law assault and battery claims against Appellees Michael White, John Beaird and Kim Tihen," the appeal reads in part. "Appellant presented a submissible case of municipal liability and requests this Honorable Court to reverse the district court's judgment of dismissal of Appellant's municipal liability claim against Appellee City of Ferguson, Missouri."
When The Daily Beast caught up this week with Schottel, Davis' attorney, he told them that rumors of the Ferguson Police Department firing multiple shots at Brown last week didn't surprise him.
"I said I already know about Ferguson, nothing new can faze me about Ferguson," he told the website.
Trends:Ferguson shooting fallout
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Two NH cops fired for excessive force against prisoner
Press freedom? Police target media, arrest and teargas reporters at Ferguson protests
Highway police take control over all police operations in Ferguson
Officer Darren Wilson identified as shooter in Ferguson teen killing


text:
162 children die in Thar during past four months
Hanif SamoonPublished May 3, 2016
MITHI: At least 162 children lost their lives in past four months due to malnutrition and other complicated diseases in Tharparkar district of Sindh, officials claim.
District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Arjun Kumar while briefing DC Tharparkar Shahzad Thaheem said that at least 245 kids with serious complications were referred from hospitals within Mithi to different areas in past four months.
The officer claimed that during this period around 39,795 children below the age of five years were brought in medical facilities of the district out of which 4,123 were admitted while 162 children died during treatment, 245 others were referred to different other hospitals of the province.
When contacted by Dawn, DHO Arjun Kumar refused to confirm whether those referred to other hospitals died or survived during treatment as 'department had no record of these children'.
Another official, on condition of anonymity told Dawn that more than 90 per cent of those referred to hospitals in Karachi and Hyderabad died on their way to the hospitals.
Social worker, Dr Sono Khangarani told Dawn that his NGO has already submitted a report regarding forced referrals from Mithi civil hospital and unrecorded deaths of kids and pregnant women to Sindh government.
On the other hand Dr Shahzad Thaheem claimed he was trying his best to further improve the healthcare facilities in Thar adding that medical camps were being set up in remote areas of district to avoid outbreak of water-borne diseases.
It is pertinent to note here that last month, commissioner of Mirpurkhas division had recommended to the Sindh government for declaring Tharparkar a calamity-hit area in view of the reports submitted by the Mirpurkhas deputy commissioner on the basis of a survey conducted by officials of the agriculture research department and Sindh Agriculture University (SAU) Tandojam.
Earlier, a commission formed on directives of judiciary visited Mithi, Diplo, Islamkot, Chhacchro, Nagarpakar and many other areas to assess the situation leading to the death of a large number of people, mainly newborn and other children under the age of five, amid a drought-like situation.
Also Read: Commission on Thar suggests long-term policies to improve situation
Most people complained of unavailability of drinking water which, they said, had become a crisis and been prevailing in the rural areas of the region for years. They also told the commission that most health facilities in Thar had been facing a shortage of doctors, paramedics and medicines, besides essential medical examination facilities.
Commissioner asks govt to declare Tharparkar calamity-hit
Health crisis not endemic in Thar alone, moot told
Footprints: Death haunts Tharparkar, again
Patrick Sarsfield
Has the minister in charged been arrested yet?
AXH
While to corrupt elites and rulers are busy looting and extorting money, the poor are dying on daily basis due to the lack of basic facilities.
The PPP provincial member of sind parliament should be sent to jail for negligence. Only a very corrupt elected member can be so uncaring and irresponsible.
Do Anybody really want to improve the conditions?
India has similar conditions in adjoining areas. But there is no such casualties. This is clear indication of either overall failure of system or partiality done to Thar people.
Has the CM got any responsibility. Or he is so old that he has no idea whats going on. are the people of pakistan going to wake up to this tragedy.
I have been reading about child deaths in Thar from past 2 years. It's so depressing to see these articles often and the government couldn't care less


Jillian Michaels' BodyShred is whole body, interval training in just 30 minutes. Each class works to burn fat, increase lean muscle, and provide better body-awareness. It's designed to change your body—inside and out.
Before you attend your first BodyShred class, here are a few helpful tips from Darci Kruse, MS, CSCS; Program Manager for Group Exercise & Active Older Adults at the Eagan Y.
Can I really get a full workout in only 30 minutes?
A single class will contain four of these 3-2-1 "circuits" and will end with cool down and stretching.
If the workout is only 30 minutes why is it scheduled for 45?
The first 10 to 15 minutes of class will be spent previewing tricky exercise combinations so that you know how to get from one move to the next without losing time or intensity. This preview time also provides a great opportunity for participants to ask questions, perfect form, and for instructors to offer modifications.
Will the exercise circuits be the same every class?
Your instructor will stick to the same circuits for an average of about a month, allowing you to become more effective and more efficient with the individual exercises and the transitions between them. Just when you begin to get comfortable with a set, your instructor will likely change it up!
How often should I attend the BodyShred classes?
You should allow for one or two full days of recovery between BodyShred classes. This time allows your muscle tissue to rebuild, helping you to get stronger. Doing exercise other than metabolic conditioning (such as cardio, light weight training, etc.) in between BodyShred days is fine and may actually alleviate some soreness.
It's working to improve the rate at which you burn calories at rest, by increasing the amount of lean muscle mass you have. With regular metabolic training like BodyShred, your body literally becomes a fat-burning machine.
I'm worried I won't be able to keep up with everyone else in the class.
BodyShred is for all fitness levels and you only need to focus on YOUR intensity levels. Remember, your instructor will provide you with modifications during the preview period so that you can work at your own level. Your only goal is to push yourself to your maximum level of effort.
A mat and dumbbells or resistance bands will be provided in the class. All you need is water, a sweat towel, and a great work ethic!
Get ready to work. During the cardio intervals, your personal level of exertion should reach a "10" on a scale of one to 10 and shouldn't fall below "7" during active recovery. Keeping up the intensity level is a key part of the class.
Don't give up. The whole idea of the class is to bring you away from your comfort area and toward a stronger you. It should be hard, and it will be uncomfortable at times. But if you keep pushing yourself and stick with the program, you will see results!


Established in 1925, Victoria College (VC) is located in Victoria, TX and is a two-year college that offers numerous educational opportunities at different levels. Attending students may earn associate's degrees, technical certificates, continuing education credits and take non-credit courses or programs intended for professional or personal enrichment.
Victoria College doesn't offer an organized intercollegiate athletics program but the Victoria Pirates do participate in club sports including baseball, basketball and volleyball. There are also numerous student clubs, organizations and activities available so that students may participate actively in campus life at VC.
In addition to social clubs and activities, the school also offers a Sports Center that sponsors free fitness activities and classes for VC students. The college has restaurants, cafes and coffee shops that provide places for students to eat, study and socialize.
Victoria College strives to meet the needs of a diverse community and thus offers several different academic options. Students may choose from associate's degree programs, technical certificates, continuing education credits, transfer credits or the dual high school enrollment program. If students want to simply take a few classes for professional or personal enrichment, they may do that as well.
There are several different types of associate degrees to meet the needs of a variety of students. Some students may wish to start a new career or pursue an education so that they may progress in a current field. Many may want to pursue a bachelor's degree but need a higher paying job while attending the last two years of school. For these students, an associate's degree from Victoria College would include very specific courses in a major with the goal of being employable in the field of study upon graduation. For this group, many colleges are now offering a Bachelor of Arts in Applied Science degree specifically for students who obtained an Associate of Applied Science degree, so pursuing a bachelor's degree that is compatible with your associate's degree is much easier.
For students that wish to finish the first two years of an undergraduate degree at Victoria College in order to save money on tuition and books, there are a couple of different transfer options. VC offers a core curriculum that is compatible with many four-year institutions and also partners with several Texas colleges and universities so that it's even easier for a student to remain on track with educational goals.
Technical certificates are a bit different from associate's degrees because they target specific para-professional career areas without requiring anything other than the core curriculum courses that are directly related to the field of study. Most of these certificates may be obtained in one year or less. These certificates are designed for people who want to begin a new career or open up the door to advancement in current careers. There are several different computer majors as well as a firefighters program, business programs and welding certificates. In addition to technical certificates, Victoria College also offers Enhanced Skills Certificates that are abbreviated programs meant to increase current job skills.
Workforce Training at Victoria College is offered through the Continuing Education and Workforce Training Department. The programs are meant to provide comprehensive career training to people who are pursuing a new career path, wish to upgrade their current skillsets or would like to simply gain additional personal or professional knowledge. Students wishing to participate in these programs don't have to apply for admission or take entrance exams because the courses are non-credit. Students will receive a certificate of completion when they complete the program. There are some interesting career choices available including police training, EMS training, truck driver training and computer training.
Victoria College works closely with the local community in order to provide courses that keep professionals current in their fields and provide community service training or personal enrichment for those seeking to simply learn new skills. Some of these include CPR certification, Electrical License renewal, law enforcement training and motorcycle safety.
In addition to the programs listed above, Victoria College also offers dual enrollment, early admissions and tech-prep programs for high school students, GED preparation for adults wishing to earn a GED and distance education courses designed to allow students to continue earning credits even while still living busy lives.
Because of their dedication to providing a quality education to all members of their community who can benefit from training, Victoria College has an open door admission policy. Some programs have additional requirements and students should be aware that due to educational requirements or space availability, acceptance to VC doesn't guarantee acceptance into all programs.
There are six steps to getting started as a new student at Virginia College. The first thing that students need to do is apply for admission through ApplyTexas.org. Immediately after applying, students should apply for financial aid by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) that's available online. This should be completed as soon as possible so that there is adequate time for the financial award to be funded in order to pay for tuition and buy books.
After applying for admission and financial aid, potential students need to submit an official high school transcript or GED score, complete the entrance exam, and schedule an appointment with an academic advisor. Finally, the student may register for classes.
Students wishing to register for continuing education or workforce training courses should contact the Continuing Education Center because the application process is streamlined for these groups.
Victoria College offers financial aid in the form of scholarships, grants and federally subsidized loans. Students wishing to apply for aid should complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) that's available online starting in January.
Ranks 4937th for the average student loan amount.
There is no organized intercollegiate athletics team at Victoria College but the school does offer intramural sports including volleyball and basketball for students interested in participating in team sports.
Victoria College. Victoria College. 2011. Web. 17 Aug 2011.
The City of Victoria, Texas. The City of Victoria, Texas. 2011. Web. 17 Aug 2011.
Ranks 2758th for the average full-time faculty salary.
StateUniversity.com has no official or unofficial affiliation with Victoria College.


True red is the most vibrant, compelling color, expressing excitement speed, power, joy, danger, and passion.
Red attracts immediate attention and brings objects or images to the foreground.
Red makes people feel warm. Coffee will seem hotter in a red cup than a blue one.
Yellow is the happiest color, associated with warmth, optimism and joy.
Yellow visually pops out at you, making it the most noticeable color.
Yellow stimulates clear thinking. Black type on a yellow background is the most legible color combination and aids in memory retention.
Orange is stimulating, energizing color that appears friendly, outgoing, cheerful, and adventurous.
Pale green is physically the most relaxing and calming color.
Vibrant green reminds people of the spring, nature, life, and youthful energy.
Dark greens are associated with stability and growth, suggesting high economic status.
Associations with blue are positive, making it an uplifting and peaceful color.
Navy blue demands respect, representing loyalty, trustworthiness, fidelity, and integrity.
Deep plum is spiritual and mysterious, with a serious dignified quality.
Pink promotes affability while discouraging aggression against oneself as well as others.
Pink calms and soothes, and is thought to aid in digestion.
People who like pink are often sensitive and romantic.
Brown is warm, comforting color associated with earth, trees, hearth, and home.
Gray represents noninvolvement, giving it a formal, dignified and conservative authority.
Unlike neutral brown, gray lacks warmth, which can make it appear remote, solemn, and bit gloomy when used alone.
Gray is associated with wisdom and maturity, adding to a moneyed appeal.
Pink suggest romance. A romantic color scheme using pastel times of pink, lavender, and peach will read as gentle and tender.
Orange conveys friendliness. These combinations convey open and easy and energy and movement.
Color combinations using yellow-orange or amber are the most welcoming.
Elegant color combinations uses only the palest tints, such as yellow mixed with white.
Possessing equal amounts of blue, yellow and green, which suggest health and prosperity. Using colors analogous to green on the color wheel will create strong color combination.
This combination are often copied from those with historical significance. Conservative colors consist of blue, burgundy, tan and green with gray or deepened hue.
The color combination are indicative of strength and authority. Intense royal blue is the centerpiece of any classic grouping of colors.
The fullness of blue combined with the power of reds creates blue-violet. Combinations using this color symbolize authority and regal inspiration.
Color combination that are energetic often contain red-violet.
The color combination of black and white is classic and dramatic, but, when combined with a single bright, such as red or hot pink, black and white is graphic. Black can be mysterious, even seductive.


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Gov. Kristi Noem Announces Massive Lawsuit to Block Biden's Federal Vaccine Mandates
Governor Kristi Noem is joining in the fight against federal vaccine mandates, as she announced in a video on Thursday.
"This morning, the Biden Administration released their guidance through OSHA that affects over 100 million Americans," Noem tweeted. "I am announcing that today, we are joining a lawsuit against the Biden Administration's unconstitutional vaccine mandates."
"From the very beginning, I've told President Biden that I would defend the freedom of the people of South Dakota and that if he took this action, that we would see him in court…The Constitution does not give them authority to take this type of action."
Attorney General Jason Ravensborg's office said Thursday afternoon that South Dakota has joined with Missouri and other states in the lawsuit against Biden's federal vaccine mandate.
"Noem has used executive orders to bar any governmental entity in the state from requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination for employees or otherwise, and to exempt state employees from federal vaccine mandates," the Argus Leader points out.
"She's also voiced opposition to efforts to prohibit private employers from requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for employees and customers, but indicated last month that she's interested in legislation to bolster a private employee's right to obtain a medical or religious exemption," the report noted.
As earlier reported, twenty four states attorney generals threatened to sue the Biden administration in September, shortly after the White House announced the federal vaccine mandates. Two of those states have formally declared their lawsuits, with many more to come.
WATCH: Fauci Moves The Goal Posts Again; Suggests BOOSTERS Are Needed To End Pandemic
Jen Psaki Also Hasn't Been Seen in Public for Eleven Days Since Revealing She Got Covid, Despite Being 'Fully Vaccinated'
Delusional Joe Hosts NBA Champs: "I Think I'm Supposed to Introduce Somebody… What Are We Supposed to Do Now?"
'This Unlawful Mandate is Now Blocked in All 50 States': Biden's Vaccine Mandate Suffers Another Blow in Ruling for Montana
The FBI Finally Proves That Donald Trump Had Nothing to Do with Jan. 6 'Insurrection'
Record 210,000 Illegals Apprehended in July Alone; Marks Worst Month in 21-Years


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AFL great.
As an AFL Hall of Fame member it's no surprise Carey is recognised as one of the greatest players to have ever played Australian rules football.
A dual-premiership captain at North Melbourne, four-time North Melbourne best-and- fairest and seven-time All Australian, Carey, nicknamed "The King", or "Duck", was one of the best center half forwards to have ever played AFL.
Carey had cemented his role as one of the most coveted expert voices in the AFL and this has remained true ever since 2015.
Carey is part of the Seven Network's marquee Friday-night commentary team, is co-host of Talking Footy on Mondays Along with his work within Triple M's AFL broadcast on Sundays and his weekly opinion piece in The Age Newspaper. Wayne also provides AFL content to BetEasy through "Ducks Roast", and "Pick a Winner" during the footy season.
Greatest Ever Player: In 2001, he was named as center half forward and captain of North Melbourne's team of the century and in 2008 was named as Australian football's "greatest ever player", as part of a list of the top 50 players of all time. This accolade can be found in the book 'The
Australian Game of Football', which was released by the AFL to celebrate 150 years of Australian rules football.
16 seasons: Carey played 272 games and kicked 727 goals from his debut in 1989 until a disc-related neck injury led to a premature retirement in 2004. This marked the end of Carey's illustrious career that spanned 16 seasons, including his last 2 seasons as an Adelaide Crow.
Coach: Following his retirement, Carey assisted former coach and mentor Denis Pagan at the Carlton Football Club as a voluntary part-time skills coach in early 2005. In 2006 he served as an assistant coach at Collingwood Football Club whilst also acting as a commentator and host of various shows on the Fox Footy Channel.
Media: In 2007 Carey transitioned full time into the media and was a member of the Nine Network's football analysis program Footy Classified. Following some heavily publicized personal issues, Carey took a step back from the limelight and chose to focus on his private life.
Radio: In 2012 Carey slowly stepped back into the football and media spotlight by joining the Triple M Melbourne AFL commentary team and ONE HD's The Game Plan.
TV: In 2013, he joined The Marngrook Footy Show on National Indigenous Television as a regular panelist and later that year he joined the Seven Network to host a series of Talking Footy specials alongside Bruce McAvaney, Luke Darcy and Andrew Demetriou to cover both the Essendon drugs scandal and the finals series.
In 2014, Carey joined the Seven Network as a Friday night Expert and a panelist on Talking Footy.
AFL & AFLW


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Boone Central Begins Construction On High School
Boone Central School is getting a major facelift in the next year after a bond was passed to add on and replace parts of the facility.
After replacing the track and football field, the School Board and Superintendent Cory Worrell started looking at the school as whole and decided there was some things that needed to change.
The first bond that was presented was to build a new school but that failed.
"The board went back to the drawing board and said 'Well, we still have these facility issues and code issues we need to address.' So what else can we do?"
In May of 2015, a bond was passed to add on to the building that was already there.
"It took about a year of research to figure out what we want to get done down here," Worrell said. "We knew we were going to add onto the elementary but you start to get down to the exact design of it, and that is what we have worked on this past school year."
The first phase of construction started two weeks ago to add a gym and new kitchen to the east side of the school.
Samson construction is leading the construction that has been halted this week due to rain.
The beginning stage of the construction is resulting in dirt work and foundation work to fix the old foundation from a previous building.
The new foundation will be able to hold the new structure that will be have the first phase complete this time next year.
The summer of 2017 will start the second phase of construction at the elementary side of the school and the science rooms.
Worrell said that the hardest part of this construction is figuring out how to working around it this next school year.
Worrell is also looking forward to the new kitchen, which part of the first phase of construction.
"I think that what exciting is know that certain things such as breakfast and lunch, it will be much easier," Worrell said. "And more efficient on how we serve kids those things."
The new gym and kitchen/commons area will also benefit the community at public events.
"I think people are excited that it will mean something really good for kids in the future and it should mean good things for our community as well."
Other changes include handicapped accessible locker rooms, more spacious offices with meeting rooms, and better security throughout the entrances.
The whole project is planned to be complete by fall of 2017.


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The Tipperary's release new single Six Nation Ceile Band
Johnny Sexton
The Tipperary's are set to release their latest sporting anthem - an ode to the Irish Rugby team.
Since their first hit in November 2017 with the soccer world cup play off song Let's Baaaayte the Danes, the group are back together for the Six Nations rugby championship and will release their new single the Six Nations Ceile Band on January 31.
Ger Corrigan of the Corrigan Brothers fame said: "Every few years we get together to record a song and this year Sean Mockler suggested we do a song for the Six Nations, it's a great idea."
Templederry's Tommy Foley features on Bodhran, Willy Dunne from Gortnahoe features on banjo, Brendan Ryan from Gortnahoo on accordion, Liam Troy from Two Mile Borris on the spoons and James Doran's whistle compliments Sean Mocklers voice and guitar. Ger Corrigan from Puckane makes up the line up on guitar.
The song will be released later this month and the boys are currently in the process of completing a video under the direction of Willie Dunne, the bands banjo player.
Sean Mockler singer and guitarist is confident of a hit with the song saying: " I think this will be a hit with rugby fans, it's got a great melody and it's easy to sing along to".
"We hope to be singing it in Dublin when the Six Nations championship is delivered by this great Irish team" added Tommy Foley.