Killing Floor 2, despite what the title suggests, is not about killing floors. Going by the new trailer released today, it's actually about killing pretty much everything but floors. And it's now out on Steam.
The Early Access release will include three levels—Burning Paris, Outpost, and a "reimagined" version of the Biotics Lab from the original Killing Floor—along with four perks, 27 weapons, 11 Zeds, seven playable characters, a new boss, and the SDK for mod creation. It supports both solo play as well as co-op action for up to six players.
Tripwire plans to add new maps, monsters, perks, weapons, and game types during the Early Access period, and will "hone and refine the gameplay balance" based on feedback from players. The studio promised a "breadth" of free content for Early Access buyers that will carry over to the full release, and said that post-release free content is planned as well.
With the Early Access version out the door, Tripwire is now tackling various technical issues, details of which are available here. Of particular note, based on the fact that it's written in boldface and all-caps, is, "Do not use the dedicated server tool in your Steam library." Set up a proper dedicated server instead, which you may learn about from the Killing Floor 2 wiki—and speaking of learning things, don't miss Evan's essential Killing Floor 2 guide, "Ten Tips For Being a Better Zed Killer," right here.


text:
Oxford manager job attracts 13 applications
By Leslie H. Dixon
OXFORD — The Board of Selectmen was expected to meet in executive session Wednesday night, June 21, to review applicants for the town manager position.
Selectman Peter Laverdiere said the Board of Selectmen will review the applications at that time, but no time frame has been determined yet as to when the new manager will come on board.
Unlike the previous town manager hiring process, which included several public meetings to gather input from residents about what they would like to see in their next town manager, this process has been secluded from the public.
Selectman Chairman Scott Owens did not return a call from the Advertiser Democrat last week requesting information, including how many applicants, who is reviewing the applications, the timetable for hiring and so forth.
He did, however, direct Interim Town Manager Becky Lippincott, who has said she is an applicant, to respond that there were 13 applicants.
Laverdiere said initially on Tuesday, June 20, that all information, including the hiring process, was "confidential."
Lippincott has served as interim town manager since former Town Manager Derik Goodine unexpectedly resigned on Nov. 17, 2016, after serving only six months.
Oxford has gone through a number of town manager changes since January 2016 when longtime manager Michael Chammings left to become Auburn's community and economic development director.
Oxford Code Enforcement Officer Rodney Smith, who passed away in March, had been acting as interim town manager during that vacancy and did not apply for the town manager's job.
Following Goodine's resignation Lippincott was immediately appointed interim town manager Nov. 17 following a brief executive session. She retained her position as financial clerk for a combined weekly salary of $1,889, according to a three-month agreement signed by the board on Dec. 1, 2016.
The three-month agreement was from Nov. 21, or until such time as a permanent town manager was hired or both parties approved extending the agreement.
On May 18 the board announced it would advertise for a permanent town manager, with applications due by Thursday, June 15. Board members said the delay in advertising for a permanent town manager for six months was caused by the board's desire to have Lippincott in place during the budgeting and annual town meeting period.
According to the latest advertisement for the permanent town manager, Oxford is seeking an individual with budgeting experience, grant administration and economic development experience, financial management skills, and good communication and public relations skills.
The Board of Selectmen would prefer a candidate with a degree and experience in public administration; however, individuals with equivalent experience and education are encouraged to apply.
The job description varies from the one put out last year. The board is no longer requiring five years, or any, full-time management experience.
Laverdiere said he was not aware of why that particular criteria was not required this time around.
Comments are not available on this story.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Австралопітек Бахр-ель-газальській (Australopithecus bahrelghazali) — імовірно, самостійний вид австралопітеків, родина  гомінід, що жив близько 3,5-3,0 мільйонів років тому

Знахідка
Це найзахідніша знахідка австралопітека. Виявлена в 1995 p. французьким палеонтологом Мішелем Брюне в місцезнаходженні Коро Торо на території стародавнього річкового русла Бахр-ель-Газаль на півдні адміністративного регіону Борку в Чадi. Вона представлена верхньою щелепою із сімома зубами

Оскільки раніше рештки австралопітеків виявлялися тільки у Східній та Південній Африці, дана знахідка стала свідченням досить широкого розповсюдження роду.

Сумніви у видовому статусі
Багато хто з антропологів припускає, що австралопітек бахр-ель-газальський не є самостійним видом. Вони зараховують його до Australopithecus afarensis через схожість знайденого матеріалу. Але є й відмінності:  малі корінні зуби у A. bahrelghazali мають по три корені, а у A. afarensis — два або один.

Примітки

Посилання
 http://www.msu.edu/~heslipst/contents/ANP440/bahrelghazali.htm
 http://www.columbia.edu/itc/anthropology/v1007/2002projects/web/australopithecus/austro.html

Австралопітеки
Вимерлі тварини, описані 1995
Ссавці пліоцену

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


New York, March 22, 2012--Turkish authorities must immediately dismiss the new criminal investigation against journalist Ahmet Şık and should thoroughly investigate threats made against Şık and investigative journalist Nedim Şener, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
On March 12, Şık and Şener were released from prison on bail for the duration of their ongoing trial, according to news reports. The journalists were charged with participating in the purported Ergenekon antistate plot and had already remained in prison for more than a year, according to news reports.
Special Authority Public Chief Prosecutor Muammer Akkaş launched a new investigation against Şık shortly after his release, according to the independent online news agency Bianet, although Can Atalay, a member of Şık's defense team, told CPJ today that the journalist had not yet received an official notification of legal action.
The new investigation against Şık accused him of allegedly "threatening and identifying judges and prosecutors as targets for terror organizations" in his statement to journalists upon his release from prison, Bianet reported. Şık had told the press that day: "Incomplete justice is not going to bring justice and democracy. About one hundred journalists are still in prison. ... The police officers, prosecutors, and judges who plotted and carried out this complot will go to prison. Justice will come when they enter this prison," according to news reports.
Four days after Şık and Şener were released from prison, unknown individuals posted threats against them on Twitter. On March 16, someone posting under the name Faiz Düşmanı (Enemy of Interest) tweeted: "Attention, attention... I warn the government... The Ergenekon Terror Organization is planning to assassinate Ahmet Şık and Nedim Şener." The Twitter post then said the assassination would be blamed on the Fethullah Gülen, a powerful religious brotherhood close to Prime Minister Recep Tayyp Erdoğan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP). CPJ confirmed that the user's Twitter account is no longer available.
"In launching yet another politicized investigation against Ahmet Şık, Turkish authorities are demonstrating their determination to criminalize dissent," CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova said. "We call on authorities to use their resources instead to investigate the criminal threat against Şık and Nedim Şener and to ensure their safety."
Also, on Wednesday, Erdoğan sought to link journalists who cover Kurdish separatist issues with the separatists themselves. In comments directed at those journalists, made at a meeting of the ruling AKP, the prime minister said: "Do you have ears? Are you deaf? ... How long will you make common cause with those who endeavor to turn an easeful country into a restless country?"
"We are deeply concerned by Prime Minister Erdoğan's intemperate statements concerning journalists," Ognianova said. "Coming from his high office, they are equivalent to instructions to his subordinates to crack down on the independent media."


text:
Features Immigration
Quebecers answer call to work on farms, but are they up to the task?
By Giuseppe Valiante/The Canadian Press
One farmer estimates the work of one foreign worker is equivalent to 2.5 local ones
Photo: Hobo018/Getty Images
Melina Plante has found that, on her five-hectare fruit and vegetable farm south of Montreal by the U.S. border, one experienced Guatemalan farmhand can produce more than two Quebecers.
She and her husband, Francois D'Aoust, have hired the same four Guatemalan seasonal workers year after year. They typically clock up to 70 hours per week on the farm in Havelock, Que., and though the pay is relatively low, the workers value it.
But this year, Plante said, the farmhands are stuck in Guatemala due to travel restrictions their country has imposed to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Farmers facing a tough choice
They are among the roughly 5,000 seasonal and temporary workers that Quebec's farmers' union estimates will be missing on the province's farms this year because of the pandemic, leaving Plante, D'Aoust and scores of other farmers with a tough choice: They can either reduce this year's food production or take a chance on inexperienced but eager Quebecers thrown out of work by the pandemic.
In response to the foreign labour shortage, the provincial government on April 17 announced a $45-million program to pay an extra $100 a week above regular wages as an incentive to work on a farm.
About 2,800 Quebecers have so far responded to Premier Francois Legault's call.
But it is still unclear if there are enough unemployed Quebecers able and willing to do the work — and whether those who do will stick around if the economy picks up and their old jobs return.
Unreliable farmhands
Plante said bluntly that in the past, Quebecers have proven unreliable farmhands.
"That's been our experience — and why we turned to foreign labour ," she said.
"We estimate that one Guatemalan worker can be replaced by 2.5 Quebecers," she said by phone from her farm.
The provincial program pays minimum wage, plus the $100 per week top-up and requires that applicants be available to work at least 25 hours per week. But Marcel Groleau, president of Union des producteurs agricoles, which represents about 42,000 Quebec farmers, says those kind of schedules simply won't cut it.
"It will take farms — at a minimum — 40 hours per week, per employee, to replace the foreign labour," he said in a recent interview.
Travel permit issues
The Canadian border remains open to seasonal farm workers, he explained, but many of them are having difficulty obtaining travel permits in their home countries.
"The pandemic made us realize how much we rely on foreign labour — but it's been hard to attract local labour in the fields for many years now," Groleau said.
Florence Lachapelle is hoping she'll qualify for the extra $100 per week.
She had already agreed to work on Plante's farm to help replace the Guatemalan farmhands before the province created the recruiting program. The 19-year-old visual arts student from Montreal met Plante and D'Aoust through family.
Lachapelle said she got involved in environmental activism at her junior college but since the pandemic doesn't know what to do with her energy.
"I think the key to fighting climate change is through agricultural self-sufficiency and knowing how to work the earth in a respectful way," she said in a recent interview. "I really want to learn how it works."
Fragile links
And while people such as Lachapelle may be helping to fill a critical gap created by the pandemic, there are other fragile links in the agricultural supply chain exposed by the pandemic.
COVID-19 has highlighted the problems associated with industry concentration, particularly within the food-processing sector, Groleau said.
"There are fewer and fewer (processing plants), and the ones that are left are bigger and bigger," he said.
"When there is an issue at one of them, there are serious impacts for the rest of the supply chain."
For example, the closure of a single meat packing plant in Alberta last week forced Canada to curtail beef exports to meet domestic demand. The Cargill-operated factory in Alberta has seen an outbreak linked to at least 484 cases of COVID-19s, including one death.
"We are not, at this point, anticipating shortages of beef," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said earlier in the week, "but prices might go up."
Food shortages this fall?
Aside from higher prices, Plante said she and other farmers in her network expect food shortages this fall. She and her husband have already estimated they will have to cut production this year by about a third.
Pascal Theriault, a lecturer at McGill University's farm management and technology program and vice-president of Quebec's order of agronomists, said he hopes this crisis forces Canadians to rethink their relationship with food.
"We worked on producing food at the lowest possible cost and that's all that counted," he said in a recent interview. But over the years, international supply chains controlled by a handful of big players have contributed to Canadians' alienation from the food they eat.
"I think the crisis will build awareness to eat more locally," he said.
"It's not that we weren't doing it before, but now we are really paying attention to it."
Higher grocery bills
Buying local could mean higher grocery bills for Canadian consumers used to seeing stores stocked with imported produce grown with cheaper labour under fewer regulations.
Canadians spend about 10 per cent of their budgets on food — one of the lowest proportions in the world, Theriault said. So there is room to pay a little more for local products — but not that much more, he said.
Lachapelle started her new job Thursday. She'll live in a trailer on Plante's farm and keep mostly to herself for two weeks to ensure she is not carrying the virus. Then when she starts what she expects will be gruelling work in the fields, she will respect physical distancing guidelines.
"I am very hard-working," she said. "I'm 19, and I think I am ready, physically and mentally. I know it's going to be a challenge. But I think it'll be will super fun."
Are you afraid to travel? Conferences, tradeshows seek to reassure attendees
Ottawa unveils $1 billion coronavirus funding package
Ottawa to exempt temporary foreign workers from some travel rules
Longer shifts, PPE and plenty of Lysol: How COVID-19 changed Pennine Security
Low-tech Japan challenged in working from home amid pandemic
Wage subsidy program for businesses opening for applications today


text:
Житије Петра и Февроније је дјело старе руске књижевности које је настајало средином 15. и 16. вијека.

Петар и Февронија су историјске личности које су преминуле 1228. године. Били су муромски кнез и кнегиња, и то је једино што се поуздано зна. Причу о њиховом животу је непознати аутор градио на основу личне маште и народног предања. Фолклорна прича је настала средином 15. вијека, а касније је након канонизације ликова 1547. године на црквеног сабору, добила своје хагиографске елементе и стекла велику популарност.

У причи су присутни и интернационални фолклорни, "лутајући" мотиви, попут појаве змаја, мудрости обичне сеоске дјевојке и њене удаје за кнеза. Прича о отпору тадашњих бољара да прихвате недостојну дјевојку за своју кнегињу је сигурно инспирисана стварним догађајима, али аутор то ублажава приказујући је као добру и мудру, а бољаре као самовољне и жедне власти па се претпоставља да су ти дијелови предања настали инспирисани временом Ивана Грозног.

У Руској православној цркви се житије преноси без фолклорних и бајковитих елемената и више је усмјерено на светост главних ликова, док се у староруској књижевности ово води као Прича о Петру и Февронији са елементима бајке, и темељи се на народном предању.

Радња Приче о Петру и Февронији
У земљи Русији, граду Мурому, владао је кнез Павле који је гајио мржњу према људима и сваком добру, па се тако у одаје његове жене усели блудни змај који ју је мучио. Змај је узимао обличје кнеза па га ни слуге ни било ко други није препознавао. Она се пожали мужу на мучење ове звијери, а он пошто није знао како да савлада змаја, даде жени савјет да га пита, кад је већ толико вјешт и зна све, како ће умријети. Кнегиња га послуша и доби одговор од змаја да ће умријети од "Петрове деснице, од Агрикове сабље".

Петар бјеше кнежев млађи брат и кад чу да је он тај који ће убити змаја поче тражити Агрикову сабљу. Приликом редовне молитве у цркви изван града, приђе му црквени момак који му понуди да му покаже Агрикову сабљу. Кнез Петар узе сабљу и упути се према двору да убије змаја. Нађе змаја у ложници своје снахе и уби га, али змајева крв га попрска и он од ње доби тешке ране и красте по тијелу.

Чувши да у Рјазањском крају постоји много добрих љекара, Петар се упути тамо са свитом, али због тешких рана није могао даље путовати па разасла своје војнике по селима да их траже. Један од војника, дође у село Ласково и уђе у једну од кућа, гдје затече дјевојку за натром како тка. Дјевојка му на питања одговараше у загонеткама а момак закључи да је јако мудра. Она му рече да се зове Февронија, и да ће му излијечити кнеза, али под условом да се кнез ожени њоме. Војник тако и пренесе свом господару.

Петар није узео за озбиљно њене ријече, (јер како он кнез да се ожени ћерком једног сакупљача меда?), али одлучи да искуша дјевојку и њене љекарске вјештине. Она му посла квасац којим ће намазати красте након купања, али заповједи да једну остави ненамазану. Кнез Петар учини тако. Одлучи да провјери колико је Февронија стварно мудра па јој посла преко слугу мали комад лана и заповједи да му од тога сашије кошуљу, гаће и пешкир док он буде у купатилу. Мудра Февронија посла слугу назад са цјепаницом од једног педља да јој кнез од тога направи натру којом ће сашити оно што је тражио. Петар схвати њену поруку да се од тако мало платна не може сашити ништа, као што се ни од цјепанице не може направити натра и задиви се том одговору. Све намазане ране зацијелише, али он је ипак не узе за жену због њеног ниског поријекла, већ јој посла поклоне које она одби.

Недуго затим, она једна ненамазана рана се прошири и на остале, и Петар опет затражи помоћ од Февроније. Услов је опет био исти, и Петар је узе за жену. Тако Февронија постаде кнегиња.

Убрзо након тога, кнез Павле са почетка приче, напусти овоземаљски живот и наслиједи га Петар. Бољари, на наговор својих жена се побунише против Февроније због њеног ниског рода. Нисмо могли допустити да њиховим женама господарица буде ћерка сакупљача меда. Бољари су хтјели Петра за кнеза, али не и Февронију за кнегињу и зато су га наговарали да је отјера. Петар је био побожан и држао се ријечи јеванђелисте Матеја: "Отјера ли неко жену своју која није скривила прељубом и другом се ожени, он сам прељубу чини." Одлучи да ће се придржавати Божијих заповједи и напусти Муром са својом Февронијом. Февронија га је тјешила ријечима да је Бог милостив и да их неће напустити. Убрзо дођоше муромске велможе да их траже, јер је настала велика борба за власт и сви учесници изгибоше. Све велможе се покорише и Петру и Февронији и они се вратише свом граду.

Владали су праведно, вољели су и помагали своје поданике, нису се гордили нити узимали од народа, него су се спремали за вјечни живот. Када им се приближио судњи час, они се замонашише и умолише Бога да умру у исти дан. Обоје предадоше своје душе Богу мјесеца јуна, 25.дан.

Њихови поданици их сахранише одвојено јер "није лијепо свеце у монашком лику у исти гроб сахранити." Међутим, одмах сутрадан се деси чудо и њихови гробови се испразнише и тијела се нађоше у заједничком гробу, гдје су и хтјели да почивају. Људи их опет раздвојише, али се они опет вратише у заједнички гроб. Послије тога их више нису смјели дирати.

Литература:

 Минић, Вук, Одабране странице старе руске књижевности, Обод Цетиње

Референце

Руска књижевност


We are committed to serving the children and families of Texas. Our goal is for our mission statement and our core values to be reflected in everything we do.
To encourage responsible parenting by promoting the involvement of both parents and ensuring that children receive the support they need and deserve.
Respect – for ourselves, for those we serve, with whom we work and with whom we partner.
Innovation – leveraging our creativity, passion, and technology to transform and elevate our program and the way that we fulfill our mission.
Service – selfless dedication to our mission and to those we serve, demonstrated by our stewardship of the resources entrusted to us and the integrity with which we approach our work.
Excellence – in our performance, in the professional manner in which we provide services, the attitude we bring, the knowledge we obtain and the relationships we build.
Do you like to help others? Do you enjoy working with people? Would you like to give back to your community through public service? We may have a position for you.


text:
using NUnit.Framework;
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;

public class Test35
{

    //GetAllByNameAndSwag
    [TestCase]
    public void GetAllByNameAndSwag_ShouldWorkCorrectly_OnExistingName()
    {
        //Arrange
        IArena RA = new RoyaleArena();
        Battlecard cd1 = new Battlecard(2, CardType.SPELL, "valq", 5, 14.8);
        Battlecard cd2 = new Battlecard(1, CardType.SPELL, "moro", 5, 14.8);
        Battlecard cd3 = new Battlecard(4, CardType.SPELL, "boro", 5, 15.6);
        Battlecard cd4 = new Battlecard(3, CardType.SPELL, "toro", 5, 15.6);
        Battlecard cd5 = new Battlecard(8, CardType.RANGED, "toro", 6, 17.8);
        List<Battlecard> expected = new List<Battlecard>()
        {
           cd1, cd2, cd3, cd5
        };
        //Act
        RA.Add(cd1);
        RA.Add(cd2);
        RA.Add(cd3);
        RA.Add(cd4);
        RA.Add(cd5);
        //Assert
        List<Battlecard> actual = RA.GetAllByNameAndSwag().ToList();
        CollectionAssert.AreEqual(expected, actual);
    }

}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Members of the research group in 2016.
The focus of our research is on scalable techniques for data management and analytics. Our work targets at the synthesis of conceptual research results with prototypical deployments in different domains. Our current topics include the efficient detection of unexpected and statistically outstanding data objects, techniques that hide different kinds of person-related information in large data sets, intelligent processing of data from sensor networks and technology for modeling and execution of secure and compliant data-aware processes. We are always interested in collaborating with users as well as with researchers from other disciplines.


text:
Capellas Leaves HP
Hewlett-Packard Co. president Michael Capellas is leaving HP and quitting the board of directors "to pursue other career opportunities," the company announced in a statement on Monday.
The departure comes six months after the former Compaq Computer Corp. leader helped HP chairman and CEO Carly Fiorina engineer a hotly contested merger between the computer giants.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Capellas is the leading candidate to take over WorldCom Inc., the troubled telcom giant which is looking to replace outgoing CEO John Sidgmore and is seizing assets of former CEO Bernie Ebbers who took a $415 million personal loan from the company.
In a statement about leaving HP, Capellas said, "I'm comfortable making this move because of the progress of the integration, HP's market momentum and the strength of the management team."
Fiorina said she supported Capellas' move. "We've reached a natural transition point. Michael made a commitment to see the merger through, and now thanks to the hard work of the entire team, we are meeting or exceeding all of our integration targets," she said in a statement.
Capellas' position will not be replaced. Executives who had reported to Capellas will now report directly to Fiorina.
Scott Bekker is editor in chief of Redmond Channel Partner magazine.


I go to Ickworth a lot and have NEVER had a scone!!! sacre bleu!
Pricey coming from a man that has just spent 5 days in Venice is a worry! I did not know about Nigel Havers! I will have to go back!
I'm so pleased you loved Ickworth because it's my nearest NT and we go there a lot - mainly to walk around the estate (highly recommended btw) or linger in the pavilion in the walled garden (our special place). We sometimes call in for tea and a scone too.


text:
NASA's newest Mars rover is smartest, most expensive yet; will it nail the landing?
Alicia Chang, The Associated Press 07.31.2012
In this July 25, 2012 photo, Rob Manning, chief engineer, speaks to media at NASA Mars Yard at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena Wednesday, July 25, 2012.
AP Photo/Nick Ut / National Post
PASADENA, Calif. - It's the U.S. space agency's most ambitious and expensive Mars mission yet — and it begins with the red planet arrival Sunday of the smartest interplanetary rover ever built.
It won't be easy. The complicated touchdown NASA designed for the Curiosity rover is so risky it's been described as "seven minutes of terror" — the time it takes to go from 13,000 mph (20,920 kph) to a complete stop.
Scientists and engineers will be waiting anxiously as the spacecraft plunges through Mars' thin atmosphere and, in a new twist, attempts to slowly lower the rover to the bottom of a crater with cables.
Scientists on Earth won't know for 14 minutes whether Curiosity lands safely as radio signals from Mars travel to Earth.
If it succeeds, a video camera aboard the rover will have captured the most dramatic minutes for the first filming of a landing on another planet.
"It would be a major technological step forward if it works. It's a big gamble," said American University space policy analyst Howard McCurdy.
The future direction of Mars exploration is hanging on the outcome of this $2.5 billion science project to determine whether the environment was once suitable for microbes to live. Previous missions have found ice and signs that water once flowed. Curiosity will drill into rocks and soil in search of carbon and other elements.
Named for the Roman god of war, Mars is an unforgiving planet with a hostile history of swallowing man-made spacecraft. It's tough to fly there and even tougher to touch down. More than half of humanity's attempts to land on Mars have ended in disaster. Only the U.S. has tasted success.
"You've done everything that you can think of to ensure mission success, but Mars can still throw you a curve," said former NASA Mars czar Scott Hubbard, who now teaches at Stanford University.
The Mini Cooper-sized spacecraft travelled eight and a half months to reach Mars. In a sort of celestial acrobatics, Curiosity will twist, turn and perform other manoeuvrs throughout the seven-minute thrill ride to the surface.
Why is NASA attempting such a daredevil move? It had little choice. Earlier spacecraft dropped to the Martian surface like a rock, swaddled in airbags, and bounced to a stop. Such was the case with the much smaller and lighter rovers Spirit and Opportunity in 2004.
At nearly a ton, Curiosity is too heavy, so engineers had to come up with a new way to land. Friction from the thin atmosphere isn't enough to slow down the spacecraft without some help.
During its fiery plunge, Curiosity brakes by executing a series of S-curves — similar to how the space shuttle re-entered Earth's atmosphere. At 900 mph (1,450 kph), it unfurls its huge parachute. It then sheds the heat shield that took the brunt of the atmospheric friction and switches on its ground-sensing radar.
Curiosity then jettisons the parachute and fires up its rocket-powered backpack to slow it down until it hovers. Cables unspool from the backpack and slowly lower the rover — at less than 2 mph (3.2 kph). The cables keep the rocket engines from getting too close and kicking up dust.
Once the rover senses touchdown, the cords are cut.
Even if the intricate choreography goes according to script, a freak dust storm, sudden gust of wind or other problem can mar the landing.
"The degree of difficulty is above a 10," said Adam Steltzner, an engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the mission.
The rover's landing target is Gale Crater near the Martian equator. Scientists know Gale was once waterlogged. Images from space reveal mineral signatures of clays and sulfate salts, which form in the presence of water, in older layers near the bottom of the mountain.
During its two-year exploration, the plutonium-powered Curiosity will climb the lower mountain flanks to probe the deposits. As sophisticated as the rover is, it cannot search for life. Instead, it carries a toolbox including a power drill, rock-zapping laser and mobile chemistry lab to sniff for organic compounds, considered the chemical building blocks of life. It also has cameras to take panoramic photos.
Humans have been mesmerized by Mars since the 19th century when American astronomer Percival Lowell, peering through a telescope, theorized that intelligent beings carved what looked like irrigation canals. Scientists now think that if life existed on Mars — a big if — it would be in the form of microbes.
Curiosity will explore whether the crater ever had the right environment for microorganisms to take hold.
Today's World News


For the second year in a row, the Lower School administration and a handful of Lower School teachers have organized book clubs for our 5th grade students. The books that have been selected are centered around issues of diversity, bullying, inclusivity, and various other social issues. Participation in the clubs is completely voluntary for the students, and the groups will meet over lunch to discuss their books sometime in the middle of October. Last year these clubs proved to be a fantastic way to generate strong discussion between children and adults, and it prompted important conversations about what it means to be an accepting, respectful member of the Lovett community and of the world.


text:
Q: How to extract URLs matching a pattern I'm trying to extract URLs from a webpage with the following pattern :

'http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/????/governor/??/-.html'

My current code extracts all the links. How could I change my code to only extract URLs that match the pattern? Thank you!
import requests
from bs4 import BeautifulSoup

def find_governor_races(html):
    url = html
    base_url = 'http://www.realclearpolitics.com/'
    page = requests.get(html).text
    soup = BeautifulSoup(page,'html.parser')
    links = []
    for a in soup.findAll('a', href=True):
            links.append(a['href'])
find_governor_races('http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2010/governor/2010_elections_governor_map.html')

A: You can provide a regular expression pattern as an href argument value for the .find_all():
import re

pattern = re.compile(r"http://www.realclearpolitics.com\/epolls/\d+/governor/.*?/.*?.html")
links = soup.find_all("a", href=pattern)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Miami's new F1 race May 8 at Hard Rock Stadium
SOCHI, Russia — The first Formula One race in Miami will be held on May 8.
The Miami race at a new track named the Miami International Autodrome — being built around Hard Rock Stadium — will be the first of two U.S. events on the 2022 F1 schedule, along with the existing race at the Circuit of the Americas near Austin, Texas.
"We've worked hard to create a track with great racing and a venue with unparalleled fan experiences," Tom Garfinkel, Miami Grand Prix managing partner, said in a statement on Thursday.
A look at the proposed layout of the current Miami Grand Prix proposal around the Hard Rock Stadium. F1
"We're happy to be able to announce the date so that people can start planning for it."
The full calendar for next season is expected to be confirmed next month with a record 23 races.
F1 said in April that a 10-year agreement was in place for the Miami race. The city will be the 11th location in the United States to host an F1 race since the championship began in 1950, and the first in Florida since 1959.
Gaming on the go finds home behind the wheel
F1 accuses FIA president of 'unacceptable' remarks
Industry climate helps first-time dealers become owners
Shell agrees to acquire U.S. EV charging firm with plugs at Kroger, Six Flags for $169M


text:
Rrapo Dervishi (* 1921 in Vlora) ist ein ehemaliger albanischer Politiker der Partei der Arbeit Albaniens.

Biografie
1950 wurde er erstmals Abgeordneter der Volksversammlung (Kuvendi Popullor) und gehörte dieser von der zweiten bis zum Ende der zehnten Wahlperiode 1987 an und vertrat dort Tirana.

Auf dem 3. Parteitag der PPSh wurde er im Juni 1956 zum Kandidaten des Politbüros gewählt. Diese Funktion verlor er jedoch bereits beim darauffolgenden 4. Parteitag im Februar 1961, blieb aber weiterhin Mitglied des Zentralkomitees (ZK).

Am 28. Juni 1980 erfolgte seine Berufung zum Minister für kommunale Wirtschaft in der siebten Regierung von Ministerpräsident Mehmet Shehu. Diese Funktion bekleidete er auch in der ersten Regierung von Adil Çarçani bis zum 23. November 1982.

Weblinks
 Geschichte der Volksversammlung, S. 150 (PDF; 18,3 MB)
 Politbüro und Sekretariat des ZK der PPSh 1948-1991
 Albanische Regierungen

Einzelnachweise

Minister (Albanien)
Abgeordneter (Albanien)
Mitglied der Partei der Arbeit Albaniens
Person (Tirana)
Albaner
Geboren 1921
Mann
Person (Vlora)


— The Gospel of Matthew (NICNT). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007.
Daniel J. Harrington, S.J. The Gospel of Matthew (Sacra Pagina). Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1991.
This entry was posted in church, discipleship, gospel, Gospel According to Luke, Isaiah, Jesus, Judaism, Kingdom of God, mission, New Testament, practical theology, Sermon Podcast. Bookmark the permalink.


Cindy Wu is the co-founder of the rapidly growing website Experiment. A biologist by study, and an entrepreneur by trade, Wu can now claim to have produced one of the finest new developments toward the democratization of science.
Originally titled Microryza, Experiment is an online platform for discovering, funding, and sharing scientific research. Wu was inspired to create the website after struggling to secure even modest financing for research in combatting staph bacteria. "You can't," her professor explained, "because you are 22 years old and you don't have a Ph.D. and you don't want more than $25,000." A silly reason for stalling potentially significant research, one would think.
Wu and co-founder Denny Luan wanted to close this funding gap. Apparently, so too did a large part of the scientific community. "Every single person said, 'Yes—if you built this, I would use it,'" Wu stated.
Investing their own modest savings, Wu and Luan thus embarked on a quest to realize this goal. Having been turned down by many investors, they were eventually accepted into the Bay Area-based seed accelerator Y Combinator following a mere 10-minute interview. At Y Cominator's "Demo Day," just three months later, Wu's three-minute pitch to investors raised a whopping $1.2 million.
I reached out to Wu to discuss Experiment, popular misconceptions of science, useful reading, and those special moments of "jelly" in scientific discovery. Between spelunking and crawling through the casts of trees that were submerged in lava, she graciously took the time to respond to my questions.
You've spoken, quite poetically I might add, about what you at Experiment call "jelly" moments—the kind of wondrous feeling one has upon making a personal scientific discovery. My question is: What was it that initially attracted you to a career in science? What have been your jelly moments?
It learned about this thing called "science" long before I knew it had the official name, "science." When I was a kindergartener I spent every recess period looking for insects: caterpillars, stink bugs, daddy long legs, whatever I could get my hands on. At the time my dream was to grow up and spend all my time catching bugs. Later I learned that professional title is entomologist. I spent a lot of my younger years playing video games. One game that I spent too many hours playing is Pokemon Blue. I loved the idea of collecting all the species in the virtual world.
I finally became "attracted" to science when I started my undergrad at the University of Washington. I didn't want to work at Starbucks anymore, so I got a job in a zebrafish lab culturing sea monkeys and feeding them to the zebrafish. That led to my applying to a undergraduate grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute designed for students with little to no research experience. The grant gave me to the financial freedom to explore any area of research. It is during the year that I started to design dendritic cell vaccines that I knew I wanted to stick with science.
I live for jelly. Just yesterday I crawled through a tree cast in a lava tube on Mount Saint Helens. When hot lava submerges a whole tree, sometimes you get this tree cast which is this empty tube of where the tree trunk used to be. And yes, you can climb through them. You also get these cool tree rings. Caving is a great way to get a dose of jelly regularly. I recommend joining the National Speleological Society if you're interested in this thing. You can email me at cruisercaver@gmail.com and I can get you set up.
There are many misconceptions about scientists and their work in popular culture, ranging from small inaccuracies to sometimes ludicrous gaffs. What would you like the public to know, or perhaps to be corrected about, regarding your work and the work of fellow scientists?
My dream is for the public to be very critical about what they read in the news. As mass consumers of content, the public has more power than I think the average citizen realizes. When you read a new scientific discovery in the news, check for the original source. Encourage journalists to link to the original peer-reviewed source. If it is not linked, write the editor.
There is a misconception that scientists live in an ivory tower secluded from the rest of the world. While there are a few scientists that fit this mold, most of us don't. Most scientists are humans just like the average citizen. You can ask us questions on twitter or through email. You may not always get a response, but many of us scientists are more than willing to point you in the right direction to the right person or to the relevant publications. It helps if you send us a specific question.
What books would you consider essential reading for anyone who wanted to learn more about your field or perhaps simply to have a better understanding of the world in which they live?
This is tough for me to answer. I didn't start reading books until last year. So, I guess you don't have to read books to become a scientist?
I keep my reading list publicly here.
The astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson had once expressed his desire to return to the lab, now that so much of his life has been devoted to being an author and science communicator. Do you have any similar desire to return to the field, now that so much of your time has been occupied running Experiment?
As much as I love building product and supporting the Experiment community, my dream scenario is to have unlimited resources and time to do science. More than doing science I would like to spend the majority of my time exploring the planet. I am particularly interested in the caves of our planet, or every underneath the earth's crust.
Experiment is now responsible for funding over 700 scientific projects. Which of these have you found the most interesting or are especially proud of having helped bring to fruition?
Our mission is to democratize the research process so anyone can do science. I am most proud of being the first money for new scientists. I empathize most with un-established scientists with no publication track record because that is what I was when we started Experiment. I am so happy when scientists write in saying they published their first paper or finished their dissertation. I would like the government science funding agencies to pay more attention to these small projects. I think the large funding agencies can do more to support the earliest part of the pipeline.
What are some Experiment projects currently seeking funding that you're particularly excited about?
If we provide reusable pads to school girls in rural Sierra Leone, we will see a significant increase in school attendance and participation.
I love this project because it combines the scientific method with empowering young women in Sierra Leone to stay in school. Children are the adults of tomorrow and it is important for adults to provide them the opportunity to keep learning.
Experiment has really taken off these past few years. What's next for the website and what goals do you hope to achieve with it in the future?
Our mission is to democratize the research process, so anyone can do science. Achieving this as a community is going to take a long time. I expect our mission to extend beyond my time on the planet.


text:
namespace Epic::Math::XForm
{
	namespace detail
	{
		template<class T, class F, class S>
		struct ModulateImpl;
	}

	template<class First, class Second>
	struct Modulate;
}

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

template<class T, class F, class S>
struct Epic::Math::XForm::detail::ModulateImpl
{
	F ModFirst;
	S ModSecond;

	constexpr T operator() (T t) const noexcept
	{
		const T f = ModFirst(t);
		const T s = ModSecond(t);

		return f * s;
	}
};

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

template<class F, class S>
struct Epic::Math::XForm::Modulate
	: public detail::XFormImpl2<F, S, detail::ModulateImpl> { };

template<template<class...> class F, class S, class... FArgs>
struct Epic::Math::XForm::Modulate<F<FArgs...>, S>
	: public detail::XFormImpl2<F<FArgs...>, S, detail::ModulateImpl> { };

template<class F, template<class...> class S, class... SArgs>
struct Epic::Math::XForm::Modulate<F, S<SArgs...>>
	: public detail::XFormImpl2<F, S<SArgs...>, detail::ModulateImpl> { };

template<
	template<class...> class F, template<class...> class S,
	class... FArgs, class... SArgs>
struct Epic::Math::XForm::Modulate<F<FArgs...>, S<SArgs...>>
	: public detail::XFormImpl2<F<FArgs...>, S<SArgs...>, detail::ModulateImpl> { };


"Fibromyalgia is a disturbance of the modulation of the pathways of pain, a complex system: the brain, hypersensitive to all stimulations, fails to inhibit the pain, which diffuses." Professor Serge Perrot.
We are going ahead with a humanitarian catastrophe.
May 12 represents the anniversary date of patients suffering from fibromyalgia, a disabling, debilitating and excessively painful pathology, which yet France still does not take into consideration.
Despite the existence of evidence, its official recognition and actual management in 2017 remain inoperative. It would depend, in part, on the results of the collective expertise of INSERM, expected at the end of 2018.
And all the while, the sick suffer, and the knowledge of pathology tramples, for lack of basic research.
This day represents the International day for the fight against Fibromyalgia, the beginning of which dates back to the early nineteenth century.
• This pathology is officially recognized as a disease by O. M. S since 1992 and is listed in C.I. M 10 under the number M 79.7, since 2006.
• In 2009, the European Parliament adopted a declaration to ensure that this syndrome is recognised as a full-blown disease.
• The number of people affected is increasing rapidly, with men now being diagnosed on two, when it was only one in 13 a decade ago. Children, even very young people suffer.
• These patients have no hope of healing to date. The report of the Commission of Inquiry on Fibromyalgia of 2016 states that: according to the Directorate General of Health, between 2% to 5% of the French population would be affected.
Fibromyalgia is not a rare disease. Yet she is the poor parent of health.
How many more suicides will be needed before a real care is taken?
• The training of physicians, a real issue in the coming years, to obtain a faster diagnosis by an increase in the duration of the teachings, in particular the chapter pain.
• The rapid development of a common guide for all medical personnel, in the form of recommendations from the High Health authority defining the modalities for the management of the disease.
• Clinical research on the causes and determinants of Fibromyalgia syndrome, integrating a large cohort of patients.
• A census of patients with fibromyalgia, encouraged by the mandatory codification of the acts of treating physicians to differentiate them from those treated for depression.
• The end of the current, catastrophic medical wandering. Six years, on average, before the diagnosis of Fibromyalgia was diagnosed.
All necessary exams must be carried out over a very short period of time and include the involvement of the internal medicine services.
Minor forms must be detected quickly at this stage, followed by a support to limit the worsening of the patient's condition.
Today, the processing of ALD-31 applications does not respect the principle of equality, and creates glaring geographical disparities. It results from uncoordinated decisions of doctors-councils, or most often of their goodwill.
• Identical treatment throughout the territory of requests made to the departmental houses of persons with disabilities.
◦ Stop the loss of the social or professional relationship, aggravating factors of the condition of the sick.
• A census and management of so-called alternative medicines: there is an urgent need to focus on gentle methods that provide at least as important a relief to patients.
• The development of therapeutic education programs to improve current care.
• The provision of additional credits to specialized structures in the treatment of pain, to equip the pain Centres with increased resources in personnel and materials, for a satisfactory multidisciplinary management.
The search for retention in employment is paramount in this affection. Professional medicine should focus on reclassifications and adaptations of the workstation. The generalization of teleworking must be sought. This would avoid difficult financial and social situations.
• The development by the High health authority of a comprehensive care basket, which is supported by Medicare, including non-medicated therapies.
• The possibility of having access to therapeutic cannabis, in order to improve the quality of life in the absence of any effective long-term medicinal treatment available.
The Association hopes that the work of the parliamentary committee of inquiry into fibromyalgia does not remain a dead letter.


America's enemies are about to find out that when you mess with Sam Fisher, Sam Fisher mess with you.
Sam Fisher is a bad dude. He'll drop from the sky, step out of the shadows, mess you up so bad you'll have to unzip your fly to order a burger and then be back on the plane to the next international hotspot before anyone knows he was there. Stalk, Strike and Silence - that's the Fifth Freedom, baby!
I suppose that the lingering look at Fisher's Bat-suit is fairly common stuff these days, but it still reminds me of nothing so much as Half-Life. Sam himself seems a bit more prone to overt violence than I remember him, but it has admittedly been awhile since I last stepped into his shoes, and the Blacklist iteration of Sam Fisher appears to be younger and perhaps more action-oriented than the model I'm used to.
Whatever the case, it looks like Sam is well-prepared to tear the enemies of America a new one, but I'd still feel better if Michael Ironside was on the case. Splinter Cell: Blacklist comes out on August 20 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.


The Bible is the inspired Word of God. The Scriptures are the divine revelations given from God and received by Man, as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, and as such, are the only inspired revelations that are infallible. The Bible is the supreme authority in all matters of faith and morals. The Word of God is the direct revelation of the will of God for all men and for all time. The Scriptures were plenary-verbally inspired, that is the Holy Spirit breathed upon men the very words and thoughts He wanted in conjunction with the writers' personalities, traits and emotions. The Holy Spirit guarded and preserved each thought, phrase and word from any error, omission or inaccuracy.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, the second member of the Godhead, who pre-existed with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Through the Incarnation and Virgin Birth, Jesus took upon Himself the form of Man, thus revealing Himself as the God-Man. Jesus Christ was sinless, perfect, crucified, buried, resurrected, ascended, glorified and He will come again to earth a second time. He is the perfect Mediator between God and Man because in the person of Christ is the complete Divine and the complete Human. He is fashioned with the same substance of the Father as to His divinity, yet of the same substance with us as to His humanity. Perfect in deity and perfect in humanity.
Man is a created being, made in the likeness and image of God (both male and female), but through Adam's transgression and fall, sin came into the world and passed upon all men. "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God." "As it is written, there is none righteous, no not one." Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was manifested to undo the work of the devil and gave His life and shed His blood to redeem and restore man back to God. Man's first step toward salvation is Godly sorrow that worketh repentance. The new birth is necessary to all men, and when fulfilled, produces eternal life.
Salvation is a gift from God to man, separate from the works and the law, and is made operative by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, producing works acceptable to God. (Ephesians 2:18).
This salvation experience occurs when an individual confesses with his mouth that Jesus is Lord and believes in his heart that God has raised Him from the dead.
The death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ not only secured the eternal redemption from sin, but also redemption from sickness and disease and redemption from poverty and lack. Divine Healing has been provided for by the Atonement. It is for the physical ills of the human body and is wrought by the power of God through various methods and means detailed within the Word. Divine Prosperity has also been provided by the Atonement. True prosperity not only has to do with financial provision but with a prospering of the soul as well. It is wrought by the power of God through the principle of tithes and offerings, sowing and reaping, and numerous stewardship truths found throughout the Word.
(Matt. 28:19, Romans 6:4, Col. 2:12, Acts 8:36 -39).
The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. He is co-equal, co-eternal and co-existent with the Father and with the Son. His ministry upon the earth is to convict and convert man as well as be the great "paraclete" (comforter, counselor, helper, intercessor, advocate, strengthener and standby) to the Church. The baptism of the Holy Spirit and Fire is a gift from God as promised by the Lord Jesus to all believers and is received subsequent to and in addition to the New Birth. The initial evidence of speaking with other tongues as the Holy Spirit Himself gives utterance, as well as other manifestations described in Acts 2, accompanies this experience. Whereas there is one initial baptism, there are many subsequent infillings of the Spirit. The purpose of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is so that we, the believers, may have power to be witnesses.
(Matt.3: 11, John 14:16-17, Acts 1:8, Acts 2: 38-39, Acts 19:1-7, Acts 2:4).
The Bible teaches that without Holiness no man can see the Lord. We believe in the Doctrine of Sanctification as a definite, yet progressive work of grace, commencing at the time of regeneration and continuing until the consummation of Salvation at Christ's return.
(Mark 16:18, James 5:14-15, I Peter 2:24, Matt. 8:17, Isa. 53:4-5).
Jesus promised to return for His church. Immediately after this catching away of the saints, the Tribulation period, spoken of in Revelation, will begin. Following the Tribulation, Jesus shall visibly return to earth, accompanied by the saints, to set up His Kingdom upon the earth. He shall reign with His saints on the earth for a thousand years, during which time Satan will be bound in the bottomless pit. After this 1,000-year period, Satan will be loosed for a short time, ending in his eternal torment in the lake of fire while the Great White Throne Judgment occurs for those who never received the Lord in their earthly lifetime. Then the new heavens and the new earth will be revealed and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
The one who physically dies in his sins without accepting Christ is hopelessly and eternally lost in the Lake of Fire and therefore has no further opportunity of hearing the Gospel or repenting. The Lake of Fire is literal. The terms "eternal" and "everlasting" used in describing the duration of the punishment of the damned in the Lake of Fire; carry the same thought and meaning of endless existence as used in denoting the duration of joy and ecstasy of saints in the presence of God.
The ordinance of the Lord's Supper shall be observed regularly as enjoined in the Scriptures. The Lord Jesus Christ, Head of the Church, established two ordinances for the Church to follow: Water Baptism and Communion. Baptism in water, by full immersion, is a direct commandment of our Lord. While it is not necessary for salvation, it is for all believers. This ordinance is an outward sign of an inward work. It symbolizes a believer's identification with Jesus in His death, burial and resurrection. The ordinance of Communion is also a commandment of the Lord Jesus that must be received consistently until His return. Only believers can come to the Table of the Lord, which consists of the bread and the cup. The bread speaks of His body, which was broken for us. The cup speaks of His blood that was shed for us. Both elements are witnesses of the New Covenant believers now enjoy while prophetically declaring His soon return.
Copyright (c) 2011 rlm.org. All rights reserved. Powered by CCamilo.com.


text:
Input Devices/
Computer Mice/
Mike Epstein SteelSeries Rival 710 Like its predecessor the Rival 700, the SteelSeries Rival 710 is a solid, pricey gaming mouse, with unique features (such as an on-body screen) that are more fun and flashy than technically useful.
SteelSeries Rival 710
By Mike Epstein
July 2, 2019 7:33AM EST
Accurate proprietary sensor. OLED display, customizable haptic feedback are fun for tinkerers. Body is customizable via swappable sensor, side panels.
Display and haptic feedback lack deep integration with many games. Pricey for a wired mouse.
Like its predecessor the Rival 700, the SteelSeries Rival 710 is a solid, pricey gaming mouse, with unique features (such as an on-body screen) that are more fun and flashy than technically useful.
In 2016, the SteelSeries Rival 700 was the height of opulence among PC gaming mice. This wired mouse earned a high score from PCMag for its great core components, but it really made its name for a series of wild features, notably a small OLED display on one side, and the ability to swap out some of its components, thanks to a modular design. In 2019, SteelSeries replaces it with the $99.99 SteelSeries 710, which changes out its default Pixart PMW 3360 sensor for a proprietary one focused on accuracy over sensitivity. While that lowers its peak resolution, the SteelSeries Rival 710 remains a very good mouse, especially if you get a kick out of brag-worthy, out-there gear.
Cougar Revenger S
Plot Your Next TrueMove
Like its predecessor, the Rival 710 is a wired right-handed mouse with seven buttons. On top, you have left- and right-clickers, a clickable scroll wheel, and an extra button just below it, which defaults to switch between two resolution settings. These numbers you can designate in the configuration software, SteelSeries Engine 3.
On the side are two more buttons, which rest below the edge of the mouse rather than on top, encouraging you to hold your thumb in position along its side. That position lines you up to use the triangular DPI-drop or "sniper" button, which is just below the forward button.
As right-handed gaming mice go, the Rival 710 is pretty thick. At 4.9 inches long by 3 inches wide by 1.6 inches high, it's a large mouse and feels especially wide in the hand. That's mostly a good thing: The mouse feels sturdy, and its shape leaves room for the right side of the hand to rest on the mouse, even if you need to adjust your grip to reach certain buttons. While the side buttons guide your hand to hold the mouse a specific way, the body has no thumb rest or support, which could come in handy during long play sessions, especially since your thumb is supposed to stay put in a rather specific position.
Before we move on to the Rival 710's most distinctive features, let's talk about the main component that sets it apart from its predecessor, the TrueMove3 optical sensor. Technically, the TrueMove3 supports up to 12,000cpi (SteelSeries favors the term "counts per inch" to DPI or dots per inch), which is substantially less than the 16,000cpi of the Rival 700's Pixart 3360 sensor. According to SteelSeries, the TrueMove3 sensor provides more accurate detection, especially at settings less than 3,500cpi.
I can't say I found a huge difference between playing under and over 3,500, but the mouse is very accurate, even when playing shooters like Rage 2 or first-person action games like Mordhau. I don't necessarily think that the TrueMove3 is worth upgrading over, but if you want, you can simply buy the sensor. (We'll get to that in a minute). Still, it's quick and reliable, worthy of a place inside a top-flight gaming mouse.
Here's the odd thing: You can still set the mouse run at up to 16,000, just like on the Rival 700. When you push it above 12,000, however, the resolution rating switches from a measure in CPI to a simulated-detection "DCPI," standing for "digital counts per inch." Though I rarely use my mice at such high sensitivity settings, the mouse felt noticeably less accurate in that range. I would advise treating the Rival 710 as if its maximum setting is 12,000cpi.
So, What's That Screen Do Again?
Just past your thumb lies the first of the Rival 710's many unusual features, a black-and-white OLED display at the front of its left side...
In theory, it will display any image or simple GIF you upload in SteelSeries Engine 3, though to make sure it looks legible, you will want to make sure it's at least monochromatic, if not black and white, and scales down to the display's small and particular size, 128 by 36 pixels. Put another way, most people will stick to images made by other users. That isn't as big a loss as it sounds, though, as you can find a lot of cool ones out there if you're willing to dig a little bit.
Technically, the display can also show practical information related to certain games, such as DOTA 2 and Minecraft, but the functionality is limited to just a few games and apps. More important, only in a very few scenarios can reading the data on the mouse's screen be deemed even charitably useful. Overall, though, I think the OLED micropanel is neat. It takes the aesthetic customization you get from RGB lighting in most gaming mice and keyboards and pushes it to the next level. As long as you're willing to experiment with it, you'll get plenty of fun out of it.
Speaking of the lighting, the Rival 710 has two RGB lighting elements: a logo in the base of the mouse, and the scroll wheel. That feels a little scanty for a mouse with so many other cosmetic features, but then again, maybe it's for the best. Having fewer lights lets the OLED display and other customizations shine.
The Rival 710 also has an elaborate haptic feedback system, which allows you to set custom vibrations tied to timers and, in some games, key events like losing a certain amount of health or running out of ammo. Again, only a small number of apps offer the ability to set those contextual haptic reminders, so it's hard to get too excited about it.
Unlike with the screen, the lack of support for a wider range of apps feels like a real missed opportunity. With 10 vibrations and the ability to customize their length and power, this kind of haptic feedback could be great for a lot of games, but after a few years, it's clear that support just isn't coming.
The last wild feature in the Rival 710 is its modular design. Several parts of the mouse (the top and side panels, the cable, and the sensor) can be swapped out and replaced with alternate components.
You might be asking about now: "Whaaat?" But there are myriad reasons you might want to buy an alternate part. For one thing, SteelSeries sells a more powerful sensor if you want greater sensitivity. Or, there's a glossy top and side shell, if you prefer that to the Rival 710's matte finish. The removable pieces are easy enough to take on and off, though they sometimes require a little force, which always makes me nervous. Removing the sensor component requires a screwdriver, which is a bit of a task, but, then again, how often are you planning to swap sensors?
Like the other features, though, it feels like one good theoretical idea has been left behind: If there were more options and upgrades (say, many different-color shells or longer cables), the modularity might appeal more as a quality-of-life feature. On the other hand, it doesn't hurt to have the ability to remove and replace parts, especially if you plan to use the Rival 710 for a long time.
The one modular component that's a little more interesting is the small, rubberized nameplate at the base of the mouse. In addition to selling replacements, SteelSeries has a 3D-printer file design available for replacing the piece, giving you the ability to make your own nameplate. While it's not an important function, by any means, and most folks won't use it given the general scarcity of 3D printers, it adds the ability to bring more customization and thought to your gear, if you're very motivated.
Gunning the Engine
As I mentioned before, the Rival 710 supports SteelSeries' configuration software, SteelSeries Engine 3, for customizing technical settings and setting up cosmetic features, such as the OLED display. The Rival 710 can save five onboard profiles, which include button mappings and visual customization elements like lighting and the display. On your computer, you can create as many profiles as you wish, giving you the option to make profiles for individual games, if you choose. I also appreciate that SteelSeries is one of the few companies with software that works on both Mac and PC, which makes it more versatile for those of us who play on multiple devices.
Customizing the basic features of the mouse, such as the sensitivity settings, the button mapping, and the acceleration, is very clear and straightforward. Setting a "tactile cooldown," a timer that triggers haptic feedback, is also clear and easy to find. Even setting the image for the OLED display, which seems like it should be complicated because of its funky size requirements, works just like uploading an image to any other app.
The software can get a little more confusing if you start dabbling with the game and app integrations, which are on a separate screen in the Engine menu. Though the visual language is clear, using a series of drop-downs similar to what you use in the mouse configuration menu, the app settings are custom to each program. It's on you to figure out how they work best for you, which can feel intimidating.
Fun Design Ain't Cheap
The SteelSeries Rival 710 can be a lot of fun, especially if you're a gadget person. Modular parts, haptic feedback, custom images and GIFs...for the right person, these can all be actively fun features to tinker with and try.
Those features come at a premium, though. In 2019, spending $99 on a wired mouse will be a bit over the top for most shoppers. While the Rival 710 proves fast and accurate, mice like the Razer Basilisk and the Cougar Revenger S deliver fewer bells and whistles but offer similarly great sensor performance for half the price. If you see yourself frequently taking advantage of the Rival 710's eccentricities, though, it may be worth taking in hand.
Bottom Line: Like its predecessor the Rival 700, the SteelSeries Rival 710 is a solid, pricey gaming mouse, with unique features (such as an on-body screen) that are more fun and flashy than technically useful.
Roccat Kova Aimo
Mike Epstein Contributor
Mike Epstein is a freelance technology and culture critic based in New York. You may have read or seen his tech and gaming coverage at IGN, Lifehacker, Gizmodo, Variety, Digital Trends, and, of course, PCMag. When he's not playing video games or checking out new gear, he is probably… asleep. You can find him on Twitter @Bombur.
More From Mike
Razer BlackWidow (2019)
Corsair Ironclaw RGB Wireless
Corsair K83 Wireless Entertainment Keyboard


A team of Men's Fellowship members in Believers Church Diocese of Kathmandu organized a compassion program in an orphanage on Founder's Day, 8th March 2016.
18 children are currently being taken care of here. All of them are the victims of the earthquake that shook Nepal last year.
The team distributed a pair of new clothes and biscuits to each child. They have also donated 50 kg of rice and pulses to the orphanage.


So, are you a blogger living in the Triangle? You wanna join TriFABB and connect, meet, and hang with some pretty cool people? Awesome!
Join our private Facebook group to stay up to date and events, get support from other bloggers, etc!
We will also be featuring local bloggers each month so be sure to check them out!
Questions? Comments? Let us know! Email trifabb@gmail.com!
Hey! How about a way for supporters to join?
Just sent an email to join!
So excited I learned about this group! Yay!
Hi!! I'm so excited about this wonderful group! I just sent an email to join. I forgot to put that my blog name is Angela Monica but it's the same as my URL. 😊 Thank you so much!!


text:
Tag: Dear White People
I was surprised when Dear White People was made, more surprised when it won an award at Sundance, and borderline shocked when Justin Simien's directorial debut got a distribution deal. I've been following Simien's long-shot attempt for a few years since he first released a trailer that showed what he wanted to do with the college-comedy genre. From the beginning I was intrigued, as were plenty of others who joined a crowd funding campaign to pay for production costs, and yesterday I finally got to see the film.
A movie that explores race, identity, and class is bound to solicit commentary and Dear White People certainly has. I'm not qualified to offer much in the way of expert opinion but after waiting so long for this film there were a few things that stood out.
The film takes place exclusively on a fictitious ivy league university campus which seems like more than a genre decision for Simien. By placing his African American characters at what many consider the epicenter of tolerance and so-called multiculturalism, Simien makes the point that race prejudice is alive and well among those for whom the charge of racism would be a cultural death. Within these supposedly enlightened environs there will be the occasional acts of overt racism. The film builds to such a moment – a "release your inner negro" party hosted by some of university's rich, white students – and it would seem overly dramatic except for the similar parties that happen every year on college campuses. You know, in real life. But, and this is significant, Dear White People also shows some of the countless micro-aggressions faced by people of color within majority culture environments. Quick asides, questions, and assumptions by many of the white students show how the African American students are regularly stereotyped, fetishized, or manipulated. Their individual identities are neither seen nor valued.
Simien has said that his film is mostly about identity and the lead character, Samantha White, embodies this. Samantha is biracial and becomes the president of the African American house and the face of the resistance against discriminatory housing policies. She also hosts a campus radio show, Dear White People ("Dear white people, Dating a black person to piss off your parents is a form of racism." "Dear white people, Stop touching my hair. Does this look like a petting zoo to you?") Most of the lead characters struggle with identity which makes sense in a film about college life. Well, the white kids don't struggle with identity, not, at least, like the black kids are forced to. And no one struggles more than Samantha. There were moments here that felt a bit over-the-top, but I've had enough conversations with folks to know that this struggle is real. The visceral pressure to lean toward blackness or whiteness is strong and it's a reality that white people will simply never experience. Dear White People does a great job of using a genre-comedy to examine this age-old American theme in a time when individuals are supposed to be totally free to choose the identity that best suits their experiences and desires. The films makes the case that we've not arrived at that point and it remains ambiguous on whether this is our best goal.
So there is much I appreciated. On the flip side, it felt like about a third of the film was great and two thirds was just OK. The main characters are meant to stand in for different types which doesn't allow for much nuance; they often feel flat. More significantly, whiteness exerts a lot of influence in a film about black identity. Maybe this is an unavoidable truth about identity in America. Still, the most interesting moment of the film for me was when Samantha ends her Dear White People broadcast, "Dear white people… never mind." If I read the scene correctly, she's done with the responsibility of educating white people. Her identity and place on campus has a logic and value that doesn't need the foil of whiteness for legitimacy. I'd have liked more of this in Dear White People, but with a title like that and a cultural reality like ours that may have been too much to expect.
David Swanson	film	Leave a comment November 4, 2014 November 4, 2014


text:
package com.apssouza.monitors;

import com.apssouza.events.TodoServiceMethodInvokedEvent;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.LongSummaryStatistics;
import java.util.concurrent.CopyOnWriteArrayList;
import java.util.stream.Collectors;
import javax.annotation.PostConstruct;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Component;

/**
 * Store TodoService method invoked.
 *
 * @author apssouza
 */
@Component
public class TodoServiceMethodInvokedStore {

    private CopyOnWriteArrayList<TodoServiceMethodInvokedEvent> events;

    @PostConstruct
    public void init() {
        this.events = new CopyOnWriteArrayList<>();
    }

    public void addNewEvent(TodoServiceMethodInvokedEvent event) {
        this.events.add(event);
    }

    public List<TodoServiceMethodInvokedEvent> getRecentChanges() {
        return this.events;
    }

    public LongSummaryStatistics getStatistics() {
        return this.events.stream().
                collect(Collectors.summarizingLong(TodoServiceMethodInvokedEvent::getDuration));
    }
}


Scuba Diving in Belize. Have you ever tried it there? If not, it's time to!
The Ohio Council of Skin and Scuba Divers, founded in 1959 shortly after the first diving clubs were organized in Ohio, has nowadays become one of the oldest scuba diving councils in the USA, older than some certification agencies. Ohio Council's mission is to provide a unified voice for Ohio's divers in legislative matters.
Underwater Explorers Society (UNEXSO), the premiere dive destination and dolphin experience facility located in Lucaya, Grand Bahama Island, and The Portage Quarry of Bowling Green, Ohio, announced the first offshore scuba diving event for the LEGENDS OF DIVING. Held annually in Bowling Green since 2006.
Panama offers scuba diving opportunities in both the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean. It is even possible to book a trip through scuba shops in Panama City to dive both oceans the same day as well as an eerie low visibility dive in the Panama Canal the next day. In one of the indigenous languages, the name Panama itself means "abundance of fish." The waters around Panama definitely live up to the name.
Scuba Diving in Belize. Have you ever been there? If the answer is no, you are not alone. In fact, Belize is one of the most overlooked travel destinations in the world. Not very many travelers, no matter how widely traveled, can put a notch on their belt for visiting Belize. Could it be that Belize doesn't have that much to offer or is it one of those gems that have yet to be discovered? The latter is most likely true, and the lack of interest in Belize has left its natural wonders intact and unspoiled by man. Mayan ruins, pristine rain forests, and the large Belize Barrier Reef remain the same today as they have for scores of years.
Numerous centers and programs for scuba diving certification has come up in recent years. In the United States alone, there are nearly 2000 professional scuba dive centers. The first thing you'd need to do before joining a program is to check out the various centers and find out which one of them should be most suitable for you.
As a scuba diver expert and instructor, Ron Bangasser taught many colleagues, friends, patients and citizens the joy of SCUBA diving. He served as an instructor for the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department team responsible for retrieving boats, planes, people and bodies. High level only.
Scubapro Diving Regulators Recalled for Drowning Hazard in June 2006. The picture of the recalled X650 second stage regulator was posted on the CPSC website for visual identification of the affected units, that had a characteristic visible raised bump on the side of the regulator close to the mouthpiece.
Is recreational scuba diving dangerous? Positively, it is. Like any water sport, scuba diving can pose threat to scuba diver's health and even danger for his/her life. Water is an adverse element for humans, and this is never to be forgotten. Proper training in the pool and in the open water, as well as knowledge on theory of human physiology while underwater is needed to be taught during classroom instruction to ensure safety for staying underwater. To participate in open water scuba diving, first you must be adequately trained and certified in scuba.
If you are a big scuba diving fan and you want to visit Gozo's coral reef, the best place to go is during the summer time. Gozo is rated as the best scuba diving holiday spot in the Mediterranean where divers can enjoy drop offs, reefs, and caves.
Scuba diving facilities and the standards of the service in Indonesian island of Bali. Licensed dive operators in Bali offer standards, facilities, dive boats and scuba diving gear of very high quality. The most popular Bali dive sites are normally those that are far away from populated areas. Some considerations regarding snorkeling. Wanting to persuade fans of snorkeling to go on to scuba diving is something frequent you come across now and then. If snorkeling suits someone better, let it be so. Snorkeling is truly a worthwhile recreational activity, hence it should be given respect to as such.
Baan Taling Ngam Resort and Spa is an exotic beachfront retreat on the island of Koh Samui offering windsurfing, snorkeling, scuba diving, tennis or mountain biking.
American submarine Liberty is the most popular wreck dive attraction Bali has to offer. The wreck is just one minute swim away from the shore. If you are an experienced diver capable to reach a certain depth, then Alamanda dive site offers very healthy coral environment and very good underwater space to be explored.
New wreck dive site at Comino, Malta. For people looking to learn to dive, Sharm El Sheikh has a particularly strong offering, with numerous established, and professionally run operations. Each year, large numbers of people, especially Europeans, come to Sharm to learn to dive, and to enjoy the various other attractions that the area has to offer.
comprar las pastillas de fin de semana . Free download Total Commander for windows 7.


It has been reported that major activities have been affected in the Idongesit Nkanga area of Akwa Ibom state after heavy flood, Thursday took over the Secretariat.
Local reports show that the flooding which disrupted workers activities, came after the heavy rainfall of Thursday morning in Uyo, the capital city of Akwa Ibom state.
Those affected by the flood disaster include: workers of the Universal Basic Education Board, SUBEB as well as Ministry of Finance who struggled to gain access to their respective offices.
Commercial drivers were also victims as the water submerged to lot vehicles including tricyclists.


text:
Changes for MMS in 2017
Fall/Winter Issue of Marin Medicine Now Available
Save the Date: CMA Legislative Advocacy Day
Marin-based Doctors Network Wins Suit against Health Chain
Victory: Judge Blocks Aetna-Humana Merger
Don't Lose Your MMS Benefits - Renew Today!
PRACTICE RESOURCES & CME
Since the announcement and departure of MMS's longtime executive director, Cynthia Melody, the MMS board of directors has been in negotiations with the San Francisco Medical Society (SFMS) to merge the two organizations. SFMS Executive Director/CEO, Mary Lou Licwinko, and her staff are currently handling MMS administration.
Marin physicians can continue to reach MMS-SFMS at:
PO Box 246, Corte Madera CA 94976
marinmedicalsociety@sfms.org
While there are many issues yet to be resolved, the merger should be complete by springtime. The leadership of both organizations aims to have a seamless transition and ensure that MMS members will not experience any disruption in their member benefits. If you have questions or concerns, you are welcome to contact MMS, or you can reach Dr. Peter Bretan, MMS President, at (415) 271-1192 or bretanp@msn.com, or Dr. Michael Kwok, President-Elect, at (415) 925-3617 or mkkwok5@gmail.com.
This issue focuses on emergency medicine and features a special section with hospital reports on emergency care in Marin. Other theme articles include the ER, patient education and Kaiser's telestroke program. Departments cover a wide range of topics ranging from gun violence and public health to the fall House of Delegates. A Resources Spotlight offers tools and resources for solo and small group practices, and a photo spread from the MMS Awards Dinner rounds out the issue. Available online or in print.
Sheraton Grand, Sacramento
The California Medical Association (CMA) will host its 43rd annual Legislative Advocacy Day on April 18, 2017. Join MMS at the State Capitol to learn about legislative issues affecting medicine, foster relationships with state legislators, and gain hands on experience in the practical aspects of physician advocacy. MMS members will have the opportunity to meet with legislators. All meetings with legislators will be scheduled and coordinated by MMS. Registration information will be available soon.
Meritage - a Novato-based nonprofit network of 700 physicians that serves residents in Marin, Sonoma and Napa counties - has won the first round in a court battle with St. Joseph Health. In July, Meritage sued St. Joseph Health, an Irvine-based hospital organization with more than $5 billion in annual revenues, alleging that St. Joseph illegally obtained confidential information that gave it an unfair advantage in its competition with Meritage. Marin Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Howard has issued a preliminary injunction preventing St. Joseph Health from using the information. A trial is scheduled for June 15. Read more.
In a recent landmark win for organized medicine and the nation's patients, federal judge John D. Bates blocked the proposed Aetna-Humana merger. The judge found that the merger would have substantially lessened competition in Medicare Advantage and commercial health insurance markets. The decision is an historic, stunning affirmation of the position urged by the American Medical Association (AMA) and the 17-state medical association antitrust coalition members. The court's ruling sets a notable legal precedent by recognizing Medicare Advantage as a separate and distinct market that does not compete with traditional Medicare.
Don't let this be the last member eNewsletter you receive from MMS! Please renew your membership today before it lapses on March 1. Click here to renew.
CURES Mandate Implementation Date Remains Unclear
Under California law, all individuals practicing in California who possess both a state regulatory board license authorized to prescribe, dispense, furnish or order controlled substances and a Drug Enforcement Administration Controlled Substance Registration Certificate (DEA Certificate) must be registered to use the Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES). Currently, physicians are encouraged-but not required-to check the database before prescribing controlled substances. Checking the CURES database will eventually be mandatory, under a law passed by the California Legislature in 2016. For more information on CURES, visit www.cmanet.org/cures
Medical Board of California's Guidelines for Prescribing Controlled Substances for Pain
CMA On Call document #3212, California's Prescription Drug Monitoring Program: The Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES)
Step-by-Step Guide Available to Help Clinicians Taper Opioids for Patients with Chronic Pain
A detailed step-by-step guide from Partnership HealthPlan is available to help clinicians taper opioids for patients with chronic pain. The toolkit includes case studies and guidance on management of complications. Partnership HealthPlan designed the toolkit as part of its Managing Pain Safely program.
Covered California tax credit mix-ups cause headaches for consumers
Physicians should be aware that approximately 35,000 Californians insured through Covered California have, at least temporarily, lost federal premium subsidies or are facing higher-than-expected premium bills due to clerical errors by the state health exchange. Physicians who receive questions from their patients about either of these issues should direct them to contact Covered California directly at (800) 300-1506. Click here for more information.
2017 AMA National Advocacy Conference
Grand Hyatt Washington
Coalition for Compassionate Care of California Palliative Care Summit
Hyatt Regency, Sacramento
American Medical Women's Association Annual Meeting
Embassy Suites SFO Waterfront
2017 Physician Regional Spring Symposium
Hyatt Vineyard Creek Hotel and Spa, Santa Rosa
CMA Legislative Advocacy Day
24th Annual HIV/AIDS Review
Finley Community Center, Person Auditorium, Santa Rosa
Western Health Care Leadership Academy
Paying Employees Correctly: Wage and Hour Laws for Health Care Employers
2/22, 12:15pm - 1:15pm
Psychological Approaches to Pain Management for the Primary Care Provider
CMA Legislative Advocacy Day Webinar Training
3/29, 7:00pm - 8:00pm
The Marin Medical Society, a 501(c)(6) nonprofit association, supports local physicians and their efforts to enhance the health of the community. Founded in 1898, MMS is affiliated with the California Medical Association and the American Medical Association. © 2017 MMS, PO Box 246, Corte Madera, CA 94976
February 9, 2017 MMS News Briefs MMS News Briefs 2017 0 Comment Read More »


text:
2021: The future of the world is in our hands
We are at a crossroads. Nobody is satisfied with the nightmarish world we have yet nobody takes any action to provide something minimally acceptable.
The capitalism model has morphed into the corporatist model
As I predicted when I was twelve years of age, the capitalist model has morphed into a corporatist one and the inevitable result is that corporations, and not noble ideals, are now at centre stage of policymaking. Let us take a look around us at Parliaments, Senates and Congresses, with lobbyists darting in and out of offices asking for favors. Let us take a look at NATO, the world's largest military organization, which is no more or less than the cutting edge of the Banking, Arms, Resources, Finance and Food lobbies (the BARFFs), led by the FUKUS Axis (France-UK-US), behind which the corporations line up waiting for contracts to be doled out, often without a public tender.
The heart of these powerful groups is the US corporations, which control and constitute the government in Washington DC and which colonize the agencies which carry out its policies, the POTUS being the puppet which provides a degree of legitimacy to the entire scam. In turn, the so-called "allies" (Poodles) are expected to follow suit and do their tricks when called, in return for a pat on the head and the label "friend" or in one case, "special relationship" despite what is muttered behind closed doors.
In return the Poodles make cooing noises and have a collective orgasm while those receiving favors and money to carry out the favors laugh all the way to the bank. Some even invade sovereign states, based on lies (Iraq), murder civilians, blast the faces off kids, stand by while Chief Poodlemaster builds torture and concentration camps, and side with terrorists who send the African State with the highest Human Development Index (Libya) back into the Stone Age, crawling with Jihadi groups and studded with slave markets. Some act as free public transportation agencies for lunatics from the four corners of the Earth to wreak havoc and destabilize countries such as Syria, destroying complex societies in which diverse communities had been living happily side by side for thousands of years.
Some deport entire populations from islands in the Indian Ocean (Google up Chagos Islands), gas their pets, I repeat, gas their pets, and give the islands to Chief Poodlemaster. All this in the name of corporative interests, all of these outrages in international law, to favor private vested interests and this practice has become the heart of international policymaking, which affects us all.
To justify or whitewash these acts, or to sweep them under the carpet, those who perpetrate these horrors have to create a THEM to justify the US and so look for an ogre somewhere. Russia is a nice big one, and so is China but these are a bit too big and will be left until tomorrow. For today, it is Iran. Watch this space.
How does it work, as regards implementation of policy? They goad, they prod, they tease and provoke, maintaining a demonology in an aggressive media campaign, telling lies and making false claims and repeat these ad nauseam until a gullible and, anyway, disinterested public believes them to be reality. "It must be true, I saw it on television".
Russia is a wonderful example. We have so-called credible sources – Prime Ministers, Presidents, government ministers, senators, congresspeople, broadsheet newspapers, TV stations, making repeated skewed and biased references to incidents, creating an image which in fact did not happen. "Russia invaded Georgia" (No, Georgia attacked Russian peace-keepers and murdered them. Russia replied with a very measured response). "Russia attacked Ukraine" (No, the West orchestrated a Fascist coup in Ukraine in which groups of thugs chanted Death to Russians and Jews and committed massacres against Russian-speaking Ukrainians after ousting the democratically elected President. Someone's son then became big walla-walla in the Ukrainian energy scene. Ask Biden). "Russia attacked Syria" (No, Russia is defending the Syrian government against terrorist groups, including ISIS, which raped nuns and beheaded little girls before and after raping them and after forcing them to watch their parents being tortured to death. These are the darlings of those accusing Russia). And so on.
All the time, they create waves and waves of tension, hoping that the victim will react and make a mistake, at which point they seize upon it. Look at how they committed the crimes of murder, terrorism, sabotage and subversion against the Soviet Union and the Comecon countries, which produced an alternative Social model to the Social Terrorist model, which provided free and excellent public services to the citizens, depriving the corporations their profits. What happened? An necessary increase in internal security was met with the accusation of creating a police state and any reaction against waves and waves of murderers, terrorists and saboteurs was turned into a Hollywood movie about freedom and democracy or some such nonsense. In the midst of this, some with political ideas were caught up in the melee.
The gullible are duped
The gullible are easily duped when surrounded with the same stories day after day with carefully chosen buzzwords such as "freedom" and "the Free World" (has anyone asked what that means?) Take a look at the sheer marketing effort which goes with this: Reference to the President of the United States as Joe Biden or the Prime Minister of the UK as Boris Johnson (two words) and the President of the Russian Federation as Putin (one word), or even Vlad (conjuring up images of Dracula, or Vlad Tepes). Ditto "Saddam", "Assad", "Gaddafy".
Did anyone inform the public that "Gaddafy" took the world's poorest country and turned it into the country with the highest Human Development Index in Africa? Did anyone inform them that "Assad" enjoys generalized sympathy and popularity in Syria and that his popularity rating is higher than the Prime Minister of the UK's? And look what happened to Iraq when "Saddam" was removed. He ruled the country twenty times better alone than all those who came after him.
So we see how they operate. And now, why? Well imagine what resources are housed in the subsoil of Russia and the seas surrounding it. You name it, and it is there, and a lot of it. This explains color revolutions, this explains subversion, trying to create independence movements, this explains the creation of "Leaders of the Opposition" who are in fact nothing of the sort, but rather figures on the fringes of Russian society. Before Navalny, it was Kasparov. Neither of them are the leaders of anything and would never garner more than a handful of votes. The Leader of the Opposition is the leader of the second most voted party, in any part of the world, and this is the leader of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. The western approach is paramount to calling Arlene Foster of the DUP, the Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom or some obscure figure nobody has ever heard of, the same in the USA.
Had this approach to policymaking got us anywhere, collectively, there might even be a reason to defend it, or at least to cast a nod in its direction. But let us take a look around us.
What we demand
Education, which should be the building block of tomorrow's global society, is patchy, even in so-called developed countries. Gender equality does not exist. People are still smothering themselves in cow dung to protect themselves from Covid, people are still raping babies to protect themselves against AIDS, people are still cutting off the clitoris of young girls so that they will never feel sexual pleasure and therefore will not "misbehave".
The majority of the population in "civilized" countries has no idea how the electoral system works, they have no idea which party represents what, no idea what policies are, in the European Union, very few understand what they are voting for when it comes to choosing their MEP (Member of the European Parliament). People come out of school without understanding how to set up a company, what their rights are, how to fill in a form, or even in some cases how to understand a text.
The chasm between the haves and the have nots is growing wider by the day. With Coronavirus-CoV2, there is an enormous gap between countries as regards access to the vaccine and even in this area, business interests are at play, with countries preferring their citizens to die rather than use the Cuban or Russian vaccines, which are excellent, just because the United States of America warns people not to go against the policy that Washington dictates.
The corporatist approach which has become the modus operandi of the West is a unilateral approach controlled by one puppet master, Washington. However, being totally out-dated, it is doomed to failure. The approach is based upon former policies of imperialism, colonialism and aggressor-grabs-all as these countries have become thieves, stealing resources, freezing bank accounts, seizing assets.
The moral high ground, which never existed, has now gone with the free Internet because information can flow freely and their foreign policy has been totally discredited. Nobody believes a word they say, despite the media barrages and even their blind supporters are starting to say that there are always two sides to every story. Attempts to turn a blind eye to revolting criminal acts such as Israel throwing Palestinians out of their homes and giving them to Jewish settlers are viewed with increasing hostility and today it is clear that Washington simply does not care any more about trying to justify its acts and those of its allies. Biden's claim that Israel has a right to defend itself is ludicrous, especially as he says nothing about the continuous Israeli policy of stealing land and homes and its total disrespect for human rights.
The massacres which Biden does not mention
Another example, Brazil, where a President who claims that Covid is just a little sniffle and who allows loggers and illegal miners to destroy the Amazon rainforest and violate the rights of its inhabitants (indigenous people are being massacred as we speak if they try to protect their lands. Did your media tell you about that?) Have you heard Biden speaking about that?
The alternative would be to create a modus operandi more in line with what people were expecting at the turn of the century with the advent of the new millennium. This is a multilateral world in which the provocations stop. No action, no reaction. It is a world in which international law is respected and has a proper forum for regulation, a world in which all countries pull together with a sustainable plan to eradicate poverty, in which the richer countries help the poorer ones without plundering their resources. It is a world in which the focus is on education for all, it is a world which respects human rights in all countries, not only a few, a world in which sovereign nations also respect the sovereignty of others rather than interfering. It is a world in which resources are pooled to create a better world for all.
Common goals
Surely, there are common goals and common values which should be basic birthrights for everybody: gender equality, the right to a decent wage, to work, to education, digital inclusion, the freedom to travel anywhere without being murdered, kidnapped or robbed, respect for indigenous peoples, cities free of drug addicts, opportunities for people to develop their skills in the professional area or in their leisure time, the list can go on and on and on.
We have the means, it is called the United Nations Organization. But what happens? When it comes to the crunch, Washington and its Poodles ignore the Organization, rendering it emasculated. And they carry on as before.
But here we are once again, with the West mouthing off about Russia with constant provocations and bad will, mouthing off about China and yet saying nothing about Bolsonaro and Israel. Is this the best we can do in 2021?
Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey can be contacted at [email protected]


text:
Bernard P. Omann, Jr. (born December 28, 1964) is an American farmer and politician.

From St. Joseph, Minnesota, Omann went to the Brainerd Community College. He received his bachelor's degree in political science from St. Cloud State University. He was a farmer. In 1987, Omann was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives succeeding his father Ben Omann who died while in office. Omann was a Republican. Omann served in the Minnesota Legislature until 1992. He ran for the United States House of Representatives, as a Republican, in 1992 and 1994 and lost the elections. In 1997, he served as deputy chief of staff for Minnesota Governor Arne Carlson.

Notes

1964 births
Living people
20th-century American politicians
People from St. Joseph, Minnesota
St. Cloud State University alumni
Farmers from Minnesota
Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives