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Tag Archives: Indigenous women
Giving Back for Native American Heritage Month
Most people in the United States automatically equate November with Pilgrims & "Indians" and Thanksgiving, and while the tide of cognizant adults is turning, there are still millions of people in the USA who do not acknowledge our country's horrific, genocidal, colonial history. I've written about Native American women's activism in the States before, but today I want to bring your attention to Native American Heritage Month, and a few things you can do to help improve the lives of Native Americans still reeling from centuries of slaughter, forced migration, forced assimilation, and modern political policies like forced sterilization that deepen the mistrust indigenous folks have against white colonizers. While we all might not be able to give back the land our ancestors stole, there are a number of other things we can do to support our Original American neighbors. Today is also the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, the kickoff of 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.
While the sentimentality of a holiday to show gratitude for what we have is nice, we can't deny the roots of Thanksgiving, which is why many Native American families and activists see the holiday as anything but something to be thankful for. The most important thing you as an individual can do to combat the mistruths we're taught in school is to educate yourself and others as to the realities facing Native communities on a daily basis. It's also important to be honest with children of all colors and races about the origins of our country and our holidays. One way to show your support for indigenous communities is to wear red on Friday, November 27th, and use the hashtags #NativeLivesMatter and #IdleNoMore on social media.
Native children, as they have under the Bureau of Indian Affairs for decades, also face incredible obstacles in achieving an education. Suicide rates amongst Native youth are astronomical, but all young people of color are much less hopeful to live to age 35 than their white peers. With South Dakota frequently taking Native American children from their families to place them in foster care (because the state earns money for every child under state care) the Lakota People's Law Project is demanding that President Obama take action. You can sign their petition here.
Another petition you should sign is this one to stop the flooding of Winnemem Wintu's last sacred location. While Obama has been lauded by many as a leader on environmental issues for not allowing the Keystone XL pipeline project to be built, there's always room for improvement, and a delegation of more than 45 indigenous leaders from across the continent are making their way to Paris for the UN Climate Talks. Environmental issues are a major factor impacting the health, sovereignty and survivability of many Native American tribes. The President is also the target of demonstrations this weekend to grant clemency to Leonard Peltier, an American Indian Movement (AIM) activist charged with the murders of two FBI agents and the fierce AIM activist Anna Mae Aquash.
Unfortunately, despite an incredible history of strong, warrior women and equality for all sexes/genders in many Native cultures throughout the continent, murders of Native American and First Nations women are still rampant and sex trafficking regularly occurs with impunity. Follow the controversy with #MMIW which stands for missing and murdered Indigenous women. Native American women also deal with domestic violence and sexual assault at astounding rates. No better example of "the personal is political" exists than that of environmental degradation of fracking in North Dakota and its impact on the levels of violence against women and girls in the area. But Native women definitely aren't giving up; they're fighting back by creating safe spaces like Tewa Women United, the Four Directions Clinic on the infamous Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, and the first-ever Native American birthing center, planned to open in New Mexico within three years. With only 14 Native American certified midwives throughout the entirety of the US, you can see why such a project is necessary–donate to it here.
I owe my initial understanding and appreciation of other cultures to an elementary school classmate's family. They are Me-wuk, and in my small public school in Northern California, took every opportunity they could to educate our class and our school. Native dancers came and performed for us and we took field trips to learn about them. Officially replacing the derogatory name "Digger Indians" placed on them by the invading gold miners, Miwok became the tribe's official name in 1924. Although I have written before about how language shapes our realities, and I talk a lot about the importance of naming, labels and respecting identities, many readers may not know that I have a degree in Linguistics. I've studied 7 languages, including two indigenous languages, Nahuatl–the language of the Aztecs, and Miwok. Studying indigenous languages is a revolutionary act, especially because of the abhorrent relationship between Native Americans and their languages that white colonizers perpetuate to this day.
Studying a new language can give us a totally new understanding, by making us view the world through a different lens. In the course where I studied Miwok, other students were studying other languages, and I learned that many Indigenous languages group nouns based on shape–round, flat, long, etc. It's also important to consider that many Native cultures understand their actions as affecting Seven Generations, and thus feel personally and politically obligated to take both their ancestors' accomplishments and their offsprings' futures into account. One way to ensure that Native Americans in our communities are not "in the past tense" is to do whatever we can to keep their unique languages from dying.
Marie Wilcox (right), the last fluent speaker of Wukchumni
National Geographic's Enduring Voices Project shows that two areas of the United States are currently suffering from high to severe threat levels for the extinction of unique Indigenous languages, although even languages like Lakota with 6,000 speakers are still not safe. The Pacific Northwest is home to 54 Native languages, but many of them are on the verge of dying out completely. A Canadian project working to combat this is First Voices, which maps and archives Indigenous languages with soundbites and written dictionaries. Further down the coast the Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival work with UC Berkeley to document languages, and also created an incredible Master Apprentice Program for individuals to learn directly from speakers of Native languages. The other area of the United States where Indigenous languages are threatened with extinction is the Oklahoma-Southwest region, home to 43 different languages, including Euchee, a language isolate, meaning it doesn't belong to any language family. Euchee only has five remaining speakers–to donate to the Euchee Language Project consider a recurring gift to Cultural Survival.
I know I've included a lot of plugs for donations in this post, but really it's the least you could do. The Dolores Project homeless shelter could use your help as well. If giving money is totally not an option at this point though, supporting Indigenous artists in all media is a good place to start. You can play the unique Never Alone, the first Alaska Native videogame, buy fashions from these Native designers instead of appropriating their themes from big box stores, listen to these seven rising Native American musicians, learn from this intrepid mapmaker and his incredible work, and support Matika Wilbur's photography with Project 562. If you're in Santa Fe in mid-August, be sure to check out the Indigenous Fine Arts Market. There are also tons of Native American authors you can read and learn from. Eden Robinson's Monkey Beach was really poignant for me. If you'd rather watch your storytelling, here is a list of 84 films by and about women of color, and if you're branching further south, 4 documentaries about indigenous Mexicans. Now go forth, and dismantle colonialism!
Photographer Matika Wilbur (c) Tulalip News
1 Comment | tags: #16Days, #IdleNoMore, #MMIW, #NativeLivesMatter, 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence, AIM, Alaska Native, American Indian Movement, Anna Mae Aquash, Bureau of Indian Affairs, California, Colonialism, Cook Inlet Tribal Council, Eden Robinson, Euchee, First Nations, Genocide, Iñupiaq, Immigration, Indigenous, Indigenous People, Indigenous women, International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, Keystone XL, Lakota, Lakota People's Law Project, Language, Leonard Peltier, Marie Wilcox, Matika Wilbur, Miwok, Monkey Beach, Nahuatl, Native American, Native American Heritage Month, Native American women, Never Alone, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pilgrims, Red Power, Refugees, South Dakota, Tewa Women United, Thanksgiving, Winnemem Wintu, Wukchumni | posted in (Dis)ability, Environment, Post-Conflict/Disaster, Race/Ethnicity and Activism, Sex/Sexuality/Reproductive Justice, Strategic Nonviolent Action, Violence Against Women
Day 25- SisterSong
To the readers who know me personally, the lack of discussions surrounding sex and reproductive rights and health has probably been puzzling. Sex, sexual rights, and sexual health are some of the areas about which I am most passionate. As Jean Kilbourne states in Killing Us Softly, sex is both more important and less important, than the advertising industry shows. I have not delved into sex/sexuality yet because it is such an intense topic and I have to be mentally prepared for it. Sunday's blog will go in depth into the fight for sexual/reproductive rights in the US.
Today I want to introduce you to SisterSong, an amazing organization that is "building a movement for reproductive justice." Reproductive justice is one of my favorite phrases in the English language. Put simplyRJ is "the complete physical, mental, spiritual, political, social, and economic well-being of women and girls, based on the full achievement and protection of women's human rights." In other words, reproductive justice explores women's sexuality and reproductive health while fighting for individuals' rights to make fully-informed decisions regarding every aspect of life from education to employment to the environment.
SisterSong is a Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective. I know that all sounds really hippy feminist, and it is, but hear me out. Let's break it down: women of color includes any and all women who are marginalized by the imposed, socially-constructed racial heirarchy in the US, usually anyone who is not or does not appear to be white and does not benefit from the privileges of whiteness; reproductive justice, again, is a social movement that seeks to teach an understanding of sexual and reproductive health and rights issues as it relates to the framework of oppression women face in the US, including poverty, racism, ableism, ageism, and homophobia, in addition to sexism; finally, collective underscores the need for solidarity amongst women to not fall prey to the imperialist tactic of divide and conquer, as SisterSong explains: doing collectively what we cannot do individually.
The Goose Story explains members' clear committment to the work they are doing and how vital a community of support can be. The SisterSong community includes Southern RJ Activists, the Latina Encuentro, Trust Black Women and these member organizations. SisterSong also produces Collective Voices, "the only national newspaper addressing reproductive health created and distributed by and for women of color…." They also recommend these publications and articles.
July 14-17 this year SisterSong will host its 2011 Let's Talk About Sex Conference in Miami Beach. The theme this year is Love, Legislation and Leadership. Sistersong also offers three different levels of RJ training which are aimed at audiences of 10-20 people.
If you would like to support the work SisterSong does to end racial oppression and sexism you have a few options: you can register for their training sessions so that you will be more prepared and able to discuss RJ with anyone who will listen; you can donate to Trust Black Women to help continue the fight against racist billboards aimed at shaming black women into not asserting their right to choose; you can donate to help preserve Mother House, the historic home offices of SisterSong in Atlanta, Georgia; or you can donate to SisterSong's Women of Color Scholarship Program to ensure that "women of color, working class communities, immigrant communities, and young women and students" have access to information and services surrounding SisterSong's work.
Girls Decide: Putting Girls' Sexual And Reproductive Health At The Heart Of Development, UK (medicalnewstoday.com)
Health and Pleasure Perks of Condoms (abcnews.go.com)
The Impact of Autoimmune Disorders on Your Sexual Health (everydayhealth.com)
Sexually Active Teens Need Confidential Health Care According To Researchers (medicalnewstoday.com)
2 Comments | tags: Activism, African American Women, Asian American, black women, Chicana, Indigenous women, Justice, Latina, Native American women, Racism, Reproductive health, Reproductive justice, Reproductive rights, United States, Women, Women's History Month, Women's rights | posted in Race/Ethnicity and Activism, Sex/Sexuality/Reproductive Justice


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Q: DirectX 9 hiding first triangle in TRIANGLEFAN My question is: How can I draw a correct pyramid (triangular quadrilateral pyramid) using D3DPT_TRIANGLEFAN?
I used as points:
CUSTOMVERTEX vertices[] =
{
    {  0.0f, 3.0f, 0.0f, 0x00ff0000, },           //The top Vertex
    {  1.0f, 0.0f, -1.0f, 0xff00ff00, },          //(A) vertex
    {  1.0f, 0.0f, 1.0f,  0xff0000ff, },          //(B) vertex
    {  -1.0f, 0.0f, 1.0f, 0xffffff00, },          //(C) vertex
    {  -1.0f, 0.0f, -1.0f, 0xffff00ff, },         //(D) vertex
    {  1.0f, 0.0f, -1.0f, 0xff00ff00, },          //(A) vertex
};

where a CUSTOMVERTEX is:
struct CUSTOMVERTEX
{
    float x, y, z;
    DWORD color;
};

and I call it by:
g_pD3DDevice->DrawPrimitive(D3DPT_TRIANGLEFAN, 0, 5);

The pyramid draws correctly, but there is an additional triangle drawn to the screen, the one made with the top and the first vertex ( a right triangle with the PI / 2 angle in the base of the pyramind and the other point being <<1.0f, 0.0f, -1.0f>> (the first point (A)).
So what I want is to hide that triangle, I tried making the device draw from 1 to 5 but that only gives me the base ( (A)-(B)-(C)-(D) plane ), and I also tried making the culling D3DCULL_CW, and when I rotated the pyramid half the time I can see the additional triangle and half it was hidden by another plane.

A: The last parameter to IDirect3DDevice9::DrawPrimitive() is the primitive count which should be 4 in your case?
If you want to include the base you'll have to render the pyramid as a triangle list instead as a complete pyramid can't be represented by a fan.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Rowan Blanchard Sex Tape – You Didn't Know This
April 28, 2022 by user_dai8suf8sdf
The Plot of Snowpiercer Rowan Blanchard Sex Tape
Snowpiercer is a post-apocalyptic tale embeded in a world where a train is the only means of transportation.
On a train that never stops, the last humans alive live in a world of their own. The train is divided into classes, where the lower class lives in squalor while the upper class takes pleasure in the very best life needs to offer. When Curtis, a member of the lower class, finds out of a plot to take and overthrow the elite control of the train for themselves, he should decide whether or not to participate in. With the assistance of his good friends and a not likely ally, Curtis will have to combat his way to the front of the train if he wants any opportunity at conserving humanity.
Jennifer Connelly and Daveed Diggs star together with Mickey Sumner, Alison Wright, Iddo Goldberg, Susan Park, Katie McGuinness, Sam Otto, Sheila Vand, Mike O'Malley, Annalise Basso, Jaylin Fletcher, Lena Hall and Roberto Urbina. Steven Ogg, Rowan Blanchard, and Sean Bean joined the main cast in the 2nd season and both Chelsea Harris and Archie Panjabi joined the main cast in the third season.
Rowan Blanchard is a young actress who is rapidly rising to fame. She is best understood for her role as Riley Matthews on the Disney Channel show Girl Satisfies World. It was produced by ABC Studios and stars Rowan Blanchard, Ben Savage, Sabrina Carpenter, Vincent Martella, Peyton Meyer and Mitchell Hope.
Jennifer Connelly is an Academy Acclaimed starlet who began her profession as a teen in modeling and commercials. She made her movie debut in 1984's "Labyrinth" and continued to work progressively in movies throughout the '90s and '80s. Connelly amassed vital praise for her performances in "A Lovely Mind" (2001 ), for which she won an Oscar, and "Requiem for a Dream" (2000 ). In recent years, she has starred in such films as "He's Simply Not That Into You" (2009) and "Rage of the Titans" (2012 ).
In Daveed Diggs, we see an artist who defies categorization. He is a rapper, a vocalist, a star, and an author, and he has actually handled to stand out in all of these fields. His work is both effective and innovative, and it has actually won him important honor and a big following.
Diggs was born in Oakland, California, in 1982. He matured in a musical household; his mom was a singer and his father was a jazz trumpeter. He began rapping at the age of 9 and soon developed a talent for creating elaborate rhymes. In high school, he signed up with the drama club and started acting. After graduating from Brown University in 2004, he relocated to New York City and began working as a star.
Sean Bean is an English actor best understood for his roles in the television series "Sharpe" and the films "Goldeneye," "The Lord of the Rings," and "Game of Thrones." Born in Sheffield, England, Bean began his acting profession in 1987 with a function in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of "Antony and Cleopatra." He has actually considering that starred in various movies and television series, earning a track record as one of Hollywood's the majority of versatile stars.
Snowpiercer is a 2013 American sci-fi action movie based upon the French graphic novel Le Transperceneige by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand and Jean-Marc Rochette. The film was directed by Bong Joon-ho, and written by Kelly Masterson. It stars Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, John Hurt and Ed Harris. Embed in a future where a failed climate-change experiment has actually eliminated all life on the world other than for those aboard the Snowpiercer, a train that circumnavigates the globe, the movie follows its guests as they fight for their survival. Rowan Blanchard Sex Tape
Chris Evans leads an all-star cast in this legendary post-apocalyptic thriller set aboard a train powered by a perpetual movement engine.
The series will follow the survivors who reside on the train as they attempt to reconstruct society.
The world will change. A new post-apocalyptic society has been produced, where the only way to endure is by riding the tracks of a huge train that circles around the globe. The travelers of this train are divided into classes: the wealthy elites, who live in high-end on the upper levels; and the rest of the guests, who survive on floorings below in squalor. On board this train are a diverse group of characters, all struggling to find a location they can call house.
On a train that never ever stops, the last human beings alive live in a world of their own. The train is divided into classes, where the lower class lives in squalor while the upper class delights in the finest life has to provide. When Curtis, a member of the lower class, discovers of a plot to take and topple the elite control of the train for themselves, he should choose whether or not to sign up with in. Set in a future where a failed climate-change experiment has actually killed all life on the world other than for those aboard the Snowpiercer, a train that takes a trip around the world, the movie follows its guests as they combat for their survival.
The travelers of this train are divided into classes: the wealthy elites, who live in high-end on the upper levels; and the rest of the travelers, who live on floors below in squalor.
Lady Chatterley's Lover Sean Bean Watch Online – You Didn't Know This
Rowan Blanchard Nude Gif – You Didn't Know This

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Tomorrow is Mother's Day and I don't know how you feel about that. Are you thankful you are a mother? Has the task simply been too overwhelming for you? Believe me, I know it can be. Some of you may get to be with your kids tomorrow, but I know that some of you won't and I wonder what that does to your heart. I imagine for some of you it breaks it.
Your kids are amazing. They are funny, they are clever, they are cute, they are creative, they are sweet, they sing, they laugh, they play, and yes, they hurt. It has been our privilege to partner with you for the past months in the care and keeping of them, and we want you to know we think and pray for you as well.
In a day and age when making the decision to abort is as common as choosing which cereal to eat for breakfast, I want to say to you THANK YOU for not doing that. I know carrying your baby to term wasn't easy. I know giving birth to him or her was painful in more ways than the obvious ones. I know that, for some of you, handing your baby over to me immediately after having him was devastating. And yet, you loved enough to give him life.
These kids. They are so precious and they love you so much. Consider this little note my plea to you to be the mom they need you to be. Because they need you to be one. And similarly it is also my plea to myself to be the same. Because I know that apart from the grace of God, I can also be one bad choice away from where you are right now.
I know your story has taken a hard turn. I want you to know we're pulling for you anyway. Yes, we love your kids, and we ultimately want the very best thing for them. We hope that best thing is you.
So on this eve of the day our culture reminds us to tell our moms thanks and we love them simply because of who they are and not necessarily because of what they've done, I want you to hear it from me. Thanks. And we love you. And your children do, too.
A Sign of Things To Come. Literally.
This is my first mother's day as a (foster) mom. As one of my little ones is home, the other one of my little ones has a home visit all weekend. Our home doesn't feel complete with him gone this weekend 😦 We will celebrate mother's day next weekend when we can all be together.
Your timing is perfect; today is Birthmother's Day.
What a wonderful letter. I praise God that he gives you the strength and courage to do what you do Megan.
Beautiful and full of grace.


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5 restaurants where you can find Sonoran cooking in Los Angeles
By Patricia Escárcega
A grilled steak and a chorizo taco at Sonoratown in downtown Los Angeles. Sonoratown co-owners Jennifer Feltham and Teodoro Diaz-Rodriguez are inspired by the cuisine of San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora. (Silvia Razgova / For The Times)
The region of Sonora has meaningful historical ties to Los Angeles. One of the city's first established Mexican neighborhoods was the "lost barrio" of Sonoratown, established in the 1850s just north of what is now Chinatown.
The neighborhood, inhabited by thousands of Sonoran miners and other immigrants from el norte, came of age during one of Los Angeles' worst periods of racial strife. During the latter half of the 19th century, Sonoratown was dismantled and razed. In a fateful sort of way, L.A.'s renaissance of Sonoran-style restaurants is helping restore some of the city's lost flavors and culinary identity.
If you're looking for modern Sonoran cooking in L.A., these restaurants are a good place to start.
Salazar's tacos include, clockwise from bottom left, carne asada, al pastor, seasonal vegetable and pollo asado. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
Chef Esdras Ochoa's Sonoran-style barbecue restaurant serves up soy-marinated carne asada grilled over mesquite in an open-air dining room near the L.A. River. Handmade flour tortillas abound. 2490 Fletcher Drive, Los Angeles, salazarla.com.
Sonoratown
Jennifer Feltham and Teodoro Diaz-Rodriguez's small, counter-service taquería in downtown L.A. specializes in exquisite mesquite-grilled steak and handmade flour tortillas crafted from soft Sonoran wheat flour produced in Diaz-Rodriguez's hometown of San Luis Río Colorado, Sonora. 208 E. 8th St., Los Angeles, (213) 628-3710, sonoratown.com.
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Sonoritas Prime Tacos
This Westside taqueria serves Sonoran-style tacos. Try the filet mignon and rib-eye cooked over blazing hot mesquite charcoal, then chopped to gently charred nubs and served on handmade corn tortillas. 2004 Sawtelle Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 444-9100, sonoritastacos.com.
Los Dogos Sonora Style
Alejandro Zamorano, right, and his nephew David Zamorano serve Sonoran-style hot dogs at their cart in front of a friend's house in Compton. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Every Wednesday through Sunday, Alejandro Zamorano and family serve Sonoran hot dogs at this East Compton stand, including a classic bacon-wrapped dogo with pinto beans, fried onions, shredded lettuce and tomatoes, topped with a squiggle of mayonnaise. 15300 Atlantic Ave., East Rancho Dominguez, (562) 316-3673 or (562) 310-9558, losdogos.net.
Coyotas de Sonora
Sonora native Marisela Parada and her husband, Juan, sell Sonora's signature pastry at the East L.A. Food Truck Row every Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. until they sell out. Choose from traditional fillings such as piloncillo and cajeta, plus harder-to-find flavors like Nutella and guava. 5506 Whittier Blvd., Commerce, (562) 641-1564, coyotasdesonora.com.
Let's split a Sonoran dog
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Chapters 7,8 and 9 deal almost exclusively with the Gospel of Mark, so they will be dealt with in one post.
Chapter 7: The Petrine Perspective in the Gospel of Mark: The earliest evidence that the Apostle Peter was the main source for Mark's Gospel has been under attack by modern scholarship for some time now. It seems that if one believes that Peter was indeed the source, then the reason for such a view is that one takes the testimony of Papius, that John the Apostle told him that Peter was the source, at face value. But are there any internal evidences within the Gospel itself that Mark relied mainly on Peter? Baukham believes there is. He cites the work of Cuthbert Turner who noticed in the Gospel Mark's use of what Turner called "The Plural to Singular Narrative Device." There are several passages introduced by Mark by a plural verb without an explicit subject followed by a singular verb or pronoun. The plural verb describes the movement of Jesus and His disciples from place to place (Baukham believes the disciples refer to just the twelve). The singular verb or pronoun describes the actions of Jesus once they arrive. (5:1-2, 8:22, 14:32) The effect the reader experiences is experiencing the action through eyewitness testimony, as opposed to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke who were not present to witness these events. (Remember that Baukham does not think that the Matthew the tax collector wrote the Gospel of Matthew.) Baukham maintains that an eye witnesses such as Peter would relate the events in the first person while when Mark wrote down what Peter said, Mark changed the narrative from first to third person. Peter is portrayed with more individuality than the other Apostles, yet he is never portrayed as having a relationship with Jesus apart from the rest of the group. Peter typifies the relationship between the entire group and Jesus: understanding-nonunderstanding, loyalty-apostacy. Yet Peter was more extreme in his behavior. It was Peter who first understood that Jesus was the Christ, but he did not understand Christ's mission and actually rebuked the Lord. It was Peter who most vociferously proclaimed his loyalty to Jesus at the Last Supper, yet he not only just ran away when Jesus was arrested but went a step further, publicly denying Christ. The Gospel of Mark is Peter's confession of self recognition leading to a life changing experience, the realization of the necessity of Jesus dying on the Cross. Only through failure could Peter realize his need of Jesus. Then he could disciple others concerning the twin themes of the nature of the identity of Jesus and the nature of discipleship. The Gospel of Mark does not contain Peter's private personal memories of Jesus because it was not his purpose to produce an autobiography. Peter was fulfilling his task of preaching the Gospel and discipling believers.
Chapter 8: Anonymous Persons in Mark's Passion Narrative: Who are these anonymous persons and why are they unnamed? Most of them are named in John's Gospel; some scholars maintain that they never existed in the first place and when the Gospel of John was written, after the Synoptics, the writers were just adding to the Church tradition, trying to make the Biblical story of Christ's ministry more plausible. If that is the case, Baukham asks, then why were the names not added to Mark's Gospel instead? Who are these anonymous persons? Christ's disciple who cut off the High Priest's servant's ear in the Garden when Christ was arrested; the High Priest's servant; the woman who anointed Jesus; the owner of the donkey Jesus rode into Jerusalem on; the owner of the house where Jesus and His disciples ate the Last Supper; the young man who fled naked after the arrest of Jesus. Three of these are named in John. Peter cut off the servant's ear, the servant's name was Malchus and the woman who anointed Jesus was Mary, sister of Lazarus. Why did they remain anonymous in Mark? As Baukham points out, Mark and the other Synoptics were written before the Church spread far from Jerusalem, before the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. These persons were probably still alive and residing in Jerusalem when the Synoptics were written. Publication of their names in connection with these events could have jeopardized their safety, perhaps their very lives. The family of Annas and Ciaphus remained in charge of the leadership and continued to persecute the Church. It was the son of Annas, Anunus II who had the brother of Jesus, James, executed in 62 A.D. When Jesus was arrested, the Garden of Gethsemane was dark, so Peter could not be readily identified as assaulting Malchus. To name Malchus would only draw attention to the event. The anointing of Jesus could have been seen by the Jewish leadership as a proclamation that Jesus was King, threatening the power of the religious elite. Lazarus was already threatened because Jesus raised him from the dead after Lazarus was dead four days. By the time John's Gospel was written, these persons were probably dead. The others might still have been alive when John wrote his Gospel. Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey was a statement proclaiming Him to be the Messiah; the donkey's owner could have been arrested. The owner of the house where the Last Supper was celebrated was kept secret so that the location could not be betrayed. The secret may have been kept by the few who knew the real names of the owners. As for the young man, it is not Mark, since Papius maintains that Mark never participated in Christ's earthly ministry or ever saw Christ in person. The youth might have been one of the crowd of disciples, or one of the pilgrims in Jerusalem there for the Passover who camped outside the city. Maybe he was only wearing his tunic because he heard the commotion of the arrest, slipped his tunic on and went to see what was going on. There is no real symbolic significance to the tunic; it slipped off while the youth escaped arrest. Baukham quotes H.M. Jackson on this point: "Ancient cloaks and mantles of the sort our youth's sindon is likely to have been...were merely...simple (i.e. shirtsleeves) rectangles of cloth, and they were regularly unwrapped or draped around the body without any belt or fasteners of any kind to hold them on; even in the best of circumstances,consequently, they were likely to slip off with the normal movements of the body. With any such violent action, particularly involving the arms and the legs, the garment was practically assured of being thrown off." The identity of one who escaped arrest was probably known to the early Church and so his identity needed to be protected. This theory is not original to Baukham. Other scholars have theorized in such manner. Baukham calls this theory "Protective Anonymity." He cites Gerd Theissen who was one of the originators of this theory.
Chapter 9: Papius on Mark and Matthew: The statement by Papius, quoting John the elder (John the Apostle), is the earliest record of attributing Peter's influence upon Mark's Gospel. Some scholars maintain that all the references to Mark in the New Testament refer to different persons with the same name. Yet Mark was such a common name that had there been more than one Mark in the New Testament, the writers would distinguish between them to avoid confusion, as we saw in the treatment of names in an earlier chapter. (See article on chapters 3 and 4.) Why is the tradition credible? Besides the testimony of Papius, we have the evidence of the use of the inclusio (see article on chapter 6), the evidence of the Petrine perspective (see chapter 7 above) and we have the quote of Papius on his standard for historical accuracy: "I did not think that information from books would profit me as much as information from a living and surviving voice." (see chapter 2 article) Papius knew John the Apostle, who was the source for Papius on this matter. John would certainly know Peter's speaking style and discern Peter's influence on Mark. If Papius was making this tradition up, why give credit to Mark, an largely unknown figure? Why not give full credit to Peter himself? Baukham cites the work of Joanna Dewey who asserts that the Gospel of Mark was written for the purpose of being read as an oral performance, written in Peter's own speaking style. It may be that Peter's Greek was not the best so Peter spoke in Aramaic and Mark translated Peter into Greek. Papius lamented that Mark's Gospel was not "in order." Papius,a professional historian was judging Mark's composition by the standards of classical histories.
1. Jesus considered the Old Testament to foreshadow the role He was to play in the climax of the divine plan of salvation.
2. Christ's quotations from the Old Testament not only demonstrate His mastery of its content but shows His evaluation of it as eternal truth. John 10:34-36 quotes Jesus as declaring that "scripture cannot be broken." Tasker believes that the rendering of this verse in the R.V. is the most correct: "scripture cannot be disintegrated." In other words, scripture, and Jesus was at that time referring to the Old Testament, must be treated as a whole. Scripture must not be interpreted by selective treatment of texts.
3. The Old Testament was the final, absolute authority to which our Lord appealed in controversies with His adversaries to justify His claims, vindicate His authority and substantiate His judgements.
While these points may seem obvious to Evangelicals, it is important to remind ourselves of them since the Divine authorship of and inerrancy of the Old Testament is not only under attack by liberals but by some in the Evangelical world as well. I have two more articles to read on the subject of the Old/New Testament relationship before I move on to articles on inerrancy.
Running Time: 6 min./7 sec.
I have completed reading the first chapter of Thomas Oden's "Classical Pastoral Care, v. 3: "Pastoral Counsel." Thomas Oden's three volume systematic theology is the primary text for the two semester Systematic Theology class at Wesley Biblical Seminary. Oden was the professor of some of the WBS faculty.
1. How do sources of the classical pastoral tradition describe the necessary and sufficient conditions of the helping relationship, the essential elements of the therapeutic relationship and how do these descriptions correspond with recent accounts?
2. What constitutes counsel, what should one expect from it, and how is an apt counselor found?
3. How does God's own emphatic caring and providential guidance shape the process of human care-giving?
4. Why is the timing of seasonable wisdom such a crucial prudential element of pastoral counsel?
5. How did the classic Christian psychologists understand the language of the body, and its relation to the struggle for language in self-disclosure, as well as the significance of silence?
6. Why are admonition and discipline such distinctive features of constructive behavioral change?
7. Can responsible freedom be rightly nurtured without moral guidance?
8. How do classic therapeutic understandings and procedures anticipate contemporary psycotheraputic assumptions and procedures?
2. Congruent, open awareness of one's own experiencing process, trusting one's own soul, one's most inward experiencing, enabling full disclosure.
Oden explains that the Greek word for a helping, healing relationship is theripea. The Greek noun therapon describes one who helps, serves and heals others. The Latin word for therapon is ministerium, where we derive our English word minister. The pastoral office, Oden states, as been historically seen as a therapeutic one.
A sample of quotations from the book are included in the audio portion of this post above to give you a flavor of the wisdom available to the contemporary Church from the wisdom of Classical Pastoral Tradition.


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ksenija.yeeles@psych.ox.ac.uk
Fax +44 (0)1865 793101
DPhil, BSc (Hons)
Research Fellow, SINAPPS Project Manager, Research Member of Common Room Kellogg College
I joined the Immune Psychosis group at the University of Oxford in 2016 to investigate the role of neuroimmune system in psychosis. My current research with the SINAPPS group aims to find evidence of possible neuroimmune causes and new treatments for psychosis. I am particularly interested in the improvement of rigours research methodology; mainly clinical randomised controlled trials in the investigation of the effectiveness of new interventions for patients with severe mental health disorders such as psychosis. In the SINAPPS Research Group, we are committed to screening a large number of patients with psychosis for anti-neuronal membrane antibodies across the UK (PPiP2 study) and investigate whether immunotherapy is effective for people with these antibodies (SINAPPS2 trial).
My other research interests were pursued within the Social Psychiatry group in Oxford which I joined in 2007. I researched the use of treatment pressures including informal (ULTIMA study) and formal coercion (OCTET), financial incentives to improve adherence to treatment in community mental healht care (FIAT) and a modified programme for employment support (IPS-LITE).
Previously I worked at the Unit for Social and Community Psychiatry, Queen Mary University of London where I investigated outcomes of involuntary hospital admission in England (InvolvE) and the impact of social and health care interventions on long-term clinical and social outcomes of people with an experience of war (CONNECT).
Community treatment orders for patients with psychosis (OCTET): a randomised controlled trial
Burns T. et al, (2013), Lancet
Effect of increased compulsion on readmission to hospital or disengagement from community services for patients with psychosis: follow-up of a cohort from the OCTET trial.
Burns T. et al, (2015), Lancet Psychiatry, 2, 881 - 890
Effectiveness of financial incentives to improve adherence to maintenance treatment with antipsychotics: cluster randomised controlled trial.
Priebe S. et al, (2013), BMJ, 347
A randomised controlled trial of time-limited individual placement and support: IPS-LITE trial.
Burns T. et al, (2015), Br J Psychiatry, 207, 351 - 356
Community treatment orders: clinical and social outcomes, and a subgroup analysis from the OCTET RCT.
Rugkåsa J. et al, (2015), Acta Psychiatr Scand, 131, 321 - 329
What does being on a community treatment orders entail? A 3-year follow-up of the OCTET CTO cohort.
Rugkåsa J. et al, (2017), Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology, 52, 465 - 472
Factorial structure and long-term stability of the Autonomy Preference Index.
Morandi S. et al, (2017), Psychol Assess, 29, 110 - 115
Recall of patients on community treatment orders over three years in the OCTET CTO cohort.
Rugkåsa J. et al, (2016), BMC psychiatry, 16, 392 - 392
Non-consent bias in OCTET--Authors' reply.
Rugkåsa J. et al, (2015), Lancet Psychiatry, 2, e33 - e34


ATLANTA – October 1, 2013 – The Weather Channel© today announced its list of winter storm names for 2013-2014, which will include Atlas, Boreas, Hercules and Kronos. Last winter the network became the first national organization to proactively name winter storms with the goals of making communications and information sharing easier, and better alerting residents to forecasts for storms that could significantly affect their lives. The inaugural effort was a great success, highlighted by the social and traditional media dialogue around the forecasts and impacts of winter storm Nemo last February, which was mentioned in more than a million tweets.
The storm names for 2013-2014 are derived from lists created by students at Bozeman High School in Bozeman, MT, as an assignment in Latin class and are primarily from Greek and Roman mythology.
The storm-naming criteria are based on National Weather Service thresholds for winter-weather warnings and the storm's expected impacts on a population center or over a large geographic area. Winter storms will be named whenever the predicted weather exceeds the naming criteria. Storms that do not exceed the criteria may also be named, on occasion, when the impacts are forecast to be especially unusual, historic, or significant.
The decision to begin naming storms came about as part of The Weather Channel's program to find the best possible ways to communicate severe-weather information on all distribution platforms, including social media. Hashtags are an intrinsic part of social-media communications, and a storm name proved to be the best way to efficiently and systematically convey storm information. Storm-name hashtags have been used with tropical storms and hurricanes for years, and Winter Storm Nemo's billion-plus impressions on social media last winter demonstrated that the same system is ideal for winter storms as well.
Improving communications is a key part of The Weather Channel's core mission to keep the public safe and informed in severe-weather events. During the winter months, many people are impacted by freezing temperatures, flooding, power outages, travel disruptions, and other impacts caused by snow and ice storms. The storm-naming program raises awareness and reduces the risks, danger, and confusion for residents in the storms' paths.
Along with naming storms, during the 2012-2013 winter storm season The Weather Channel also introduced a new Winter Impact Index called STORM:CON, a scientific, point-based winter weather index that provides, on a scale of one to 10, the potential impacts for major U.S. cities in the path of the storm. To create this index, several factors are considered, including the forecast of the storm's duration, time of day, day of the week, how close in time to a previous significant winter event it occurs, and whether it occurs early or late in the season. The final index number provides an indication of the impact a winter storm will have on a particular city.
Through The Weather Channel, weather.com, Weather Underground, Intellicast.com and third-party publishing partners, the company provides millions of people every day with the world's best weather forecasts, content and data, connecting with them through television, online, mobile and tablet screens. Through WSI and Weather Central, the company delivers superior professional weather services for the media, aviation, marine and energy sectors. The Weather Company is owned by a consortium made up of NBC Universal and the private equity firms The Blackstone Group and Bain Capital. For more information, visit www.weather.com/press.


Throughout the year, we offer a variety of workshops designed to develop practical life skills and to promote and encourage spiritual development. In addition to our regularly scheduled Unwrapping the Gift of Forgiveness seminars, recently we have hosted three workshops on marriage: Unveiling the Mystery of Marriage, I Still Do, and The Art of Marriage.
Also throughout the year we coordinate special fellowship events. Often these are for the whole family, but not always. In the past these have included: Thanksgiving dinner, Fall Fun and Games Night, Fourth of July picnic, church camping trips, breakfasts, hikes and picnics. These vary from year to year but are always fun, exciting, and beneficial. They are opportunities to encourage the building of personal relationships with others. Many of them are designed for our family members and friends who don't normally come to our church.


LEWISTON — The next Pause for Pets Craft & Vendor Fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, April 9, at the Ramada Inn. The fair is a fundraiser for the Greater Androscoggin Humane Society. There is no cost for admission.
There will be 60 local crafters and vendors offering a variety of products and services. There will be a 50/50 and prize raffles as well as free door prize drawings.
Volunteers and staffers from GAHS will be on hand to discuss the shelter's programs and services. They will also collect donations of pet food, litter, bleach, clean newspapers and other essential items.
Pause for Pets fairs have been held twice a year since 2012, and the last event raised more than $3,100 for GAHS in November 2016. The events are coordinated by Lauren Odiorne and Shannon Vishe, of Lewiston.
Pause for Pets, a benefit fair for the Greater Androscoggin Humane Society, raised $3,183.12 during the November fair. This spring's fair will be held Saturday, April 8. Pictured are Zach Black, operations manager of GAHS, and Shannon Vishe, co-coordinator of Pause for Pets.


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WINDY CITY MEDIA GROUP
Archivist talks documenting leather, S&M and fetishism history
by Charlsie Dewey
For more than four decades, Gayle Rubin has been uncovering documents and artifacts pertaining to leather, S&M and fetishism culture, ensuring this important piece of history isn't lost to time.
Rubin—who is an archivist and associate professor of anthropology and women's studies at the University of Michigan—didn't set out to become one of the country's top archivists of these materials. Instead, her work led her down that path.
In 1978, while working on her dissertation on gay male leather subculture in San Francisco she found the source material necessary for her work substantially lacking.
"The research institutions that normally would collect archival materials on which scholars could base their research just didn't collect this material," Rubin said.
She noted that was the case for most LGBTQ materials.
"I got involved doing research first on lesbian history in the early 1970s, then on gay history more generally, and then on leather history toward the late 1970s, and at that time, there were very few collections of primary source material in any of these areas," she said.
"When I first went to San Francisco to do research there, the major research libraries in the Bay Area didn't even have copies of the major gay newspapers. They just didn't collect those types of materials."
As a result, Rubin and others doing similar work began accumulating source materials themselves.
Rubin said that accumulation proved challenging.
First, she noted, as with any attempt to document history, many of the documents and artifacts were naturally lost to time.
"Any kind of documentary material that is produced in almost any situation on this planet only survives partly by accident and partly because there are resources available to preserve it," Rubin said.
"Even where materials are durable or there is an institution to take care of them, there are the problems of wars and fires. The library of Alexandria burned and a lot of material is lost every time there is a war."
Rubin said when it comes to sexual histories or other stigmatized histories there are additional challenges that come into play as well.
"A lot of people didn't save material because they thought it wasn't important or they were embarrassed by it," she said.
She also noted the impact of the AIDS epidemic in the early 1980s on material preservation.
"A lot of the people who were dying were too young to have thought about making a will or appointing someone to have legal authority to manage their estate," Rubin said. "A lot of families came in and either didn't know what the stuff was or were embarrassed by it, so a lot of it got thrown away.
"One organization with which I was involved at the time was called the San Francisco Lesbian and Gay History Project. We were out doing salvage operations, trying to save what we could from this wave of loss and destruction that was happening, not just to the individuals, but to the histories of the communities in which they'd been a part."
Rubin said it is particularly important for minority communities to preserve their histories.
"If you don't have that ability to produce, preserve and make accessible the documentary and artifactual remains of any human project, it tends to vanish very quickly and then people don't know it ever happened.
"With gay history, a lot has been lost. A lot of young gay people were under the impression they were the first individuals on the planet to ever have these feelings or to try to articulate and express them, because the histories had not been adequately preserved."
By preserving the histories of the LGBTQ community and its many subcultures over time, Rubin said, "We could situate ourselves better historically, intellectually and socially, and have some understanding of who we were and where we were in the world."
That knowledge also provides a source of power for present-day movements.
"Knowledge is a form of power and without it, one is lacking some really key tools for functioning in the world and certainly for certain social and political and moral agendas," Rubin said.
Rubin will share her knowledge as an archivist and anthropologist on Saturday, April 23, in Chicago at the Leather Archives & Museum, 6418 N. Greenview Ave.
Rubin said she will talk about the challenges early scholars faced in locating and assembling source materials related to LGBTQ history as well as about her specific collection of leather, S&M and fetishism, which she has accumulated through her projects.
The presentation, "Archival Fetishism: Decades of Documenting Leather History," will begin at 3 p.m. n Saturday, April 23, at the Leather Archives & Museum, 6418 N. Greenview Ave. Doors will open at 2:30 p.m. Member admission is free; general admission is $10. Tickets will be available at the door or at Article Link Here .


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State budget proposal $125M more than '19; Hutchinson factors in revenue reductions
by Michael R. Wickline | November 15, 2018 at 4:30 a.m. 2comments
Lawmakers applaud Wednesday as Gov. Asa Hutchinson leaves the room after presenting his proposed state budget. - Photo by Thomas Metthe
Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Wednesday proposed a state general-revenue budget for next fiscal year that is $125.2 million more than this year's budget, with most of the increase going to human services and education programs, including a boost in starting teacher pay.
The proposed budget of $5.75 billion is for fiscal 2020, starting July 1. The Legislature will decide on a budget in the regular session starting Jan. 14.
The proposal factors in a $47.4 million reduction in revenue from the Republican governor's proposal to gradually reduce individual income taxes. He wants to phase in reducing the top individual tax rate from 6.9 percent to 5.9 percent and reduce the number of tax tables from three to one.
During a joint meeting of the Legislative Council and Joint Budget Committee, Hutchinson said his proposal "meets our state obligations, funds necessary services, increases teacher pay, meets the needs of public safety and continues to reform our tax code."
The governor also discussed a proposed fiscal 2021 general-revenue budget. He proposes a $128 million increase to $5.87 billion. The proposal factors in a $111 million reduction in revenue from implementing the tax cut plan. Fiscal 2021 starts July 1, 2020, and the Legislature will vote on that budget during its 2020 fiscal session.
In a letter to the Legislative Council, Hutchinson said that federal tax conformity and adding magazine subscriptions to the sales-tax base will raise $30.3 million in both fiscal years and offset part of the impact from his tax-cut plan.
The general-revenue forecast for the next two fiscal years includes the expected increase in revenue from Internet sales-tax collections. Hutchinson anticipates legislative approval of a law taking advantage of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding a South Dakota law on taxing Internet sales, the governor said.
John Shelnutt, the state's chief economic forecaster, told lawmakers that about $20 million a year in increased Internet sales tax collections is factored into the governor's budget.
Hutchinson told lawmakers that his tax-cut plan was developed in partnership with the Tax Reform and Relief Legislative Tax Force, chaired by Sen. Jim Hendren, R-Sulphur Springs, and Rep. Lane Jean, R-Magnolia.
The proposal would reduce the top rate from 6.9 percent to 6.5 percent in 2020 and to 6.3 percent in 2021 and simplify the tax tables and brackets, he said.
"This sets us on a path of reducing our [top] rate in Arkansas for individual taxpayers to 5.9 percent in four years. This is historic and will increase the attractiveness of Arkansas as a destination, as a place to invest, to build and locate," Hutchinson said.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson presents his fiscal 2020 budget proposal Wednesday during a joint meeting of the Legislative Council and Joint Budget Committee.
The plan also would increase rates for some taxpayers and increase the standard deductions for married and single taxpayers to offset any increased taxes, according to state officials. They've projected the plan would eventually reduce revenue by nearly $192 million a year.
In 2015 and 2017, the Legislature approved Hutchinson's plans to reduce rates for people with taxable income up to $75,000 a year. The first two plans are projected to collectively reduce revenue by about $150 million a year.
LAWMAKERS REACT
Legislative leaders had a mixed reaction to the governor's proposal.
Jean said the proposed budget is pretty tight.
"I would have liked to see in the first year $25 million or $30 million in cuts in state government to help fund [more tax cuts]," said Jean, who also is a co-chairman of the Joint Budget Committee.
"I really don't think all the details have been worked out yet on both spending and tax cuts. But it's a starting point," he said in an interview.
Senate Democratic leader Keith Ingram of West Memphis said he wants to take a closer look at the proposed budget and tax cut.
The proposed raise for starting teacher pay "is very positive and I probably would like to give more," he said in an interview. "I have some concerns about pre-K, [increased special education] catastrophic funding that is not in there. Our senior citizens are struggling. There is a number of needs."
Afterward, Hutchinson told reporters, "I think the battle will be in whether we accelerate tax cuts, we try to accommodate more tax cuts in there.
"I think there will be some debate on whether we need to fund other items that are not as robust as some of the legislators would like. Do we have 30 new parole officers or do we have 40?" He's proposed 30.
The budget would increase the public school fund by $30.7 million, to $2.22 billion, in fiscal 2020.
The governor said he's committed to raising the starting teacher salary from the current $31,800 to $36,000 a year over the next four years. The final estimated cost is $60 million a year.
Hutchinson said he is asking lawmakers to transfer $60 million from the educational adequacy fund to the public school fund for implementing teacher salary increases. He said about 174 school districts in Arkansas "are below what we would anticipate moving the minimum district salary to $36,000."
He said his proposed budget also would provide more funding for school district matching funds to the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System and "assures teachers that we are committed to a healthy teacher retirement system.
"I am convinced that as you look at education that quality teachers make all the difference and that's why this budget funds teacher salary increases. It funds your [educational] adequacy recommendations and continues with robust funding of our computer science initiative," Hutchinson said.
The House and Senate education committees have disagreed about how much in state funds should be allocated to the special-education catastrophic fund, which is available to school districts to use for students' individualized education plans.
"We hope that there will be, as happened two years ago, at some point, a coming together of the two sides on this issue, but we felt the best course of action was to go with the flat request and, if any adjustments are made to the adequacy committee report through the session, we'll be prepared to make adjustments to that," said Johnny Key, the state's education commissioner. The adequacy committee looks at school funding needs.
Governor's budget proposal for fiscal 2020
The proposed budget for the Department of Human Services would increase by $68.2 million to $1.73 billion in fiscal 2020. The department's grants budget for Medicaid would increase by $61.6 million to $1.3 billion.
Afterward, Hutchinson said his proposed budget includes the funding to meet the higher match that is required by federal law for the Medicaid expansion.
The state is paying 6 percent of the cost of the Medicaid expansion program that provides health insurance coverage for about 250,000 low-income Arkansans. The program is called Arkansas Works under Hutchinson. The state's share will be 7 percent next year and increase to 10 percent in 2020 under existing federal law.
In fiscal 2019, the state's share of the cost of the program has been projected at about $135 million and the federal government's share at $1.95 billion. In fiscal 2020, the state's share is projected at $177 million and the federal government's share at $1.91 billion, said Scott Hardin, a spokesman for the state Department of Finance and Administration.
The governor's proposed budget also includes $2.5 million a year for the state's four crisis stabilization units that are designed as a temporary place to send people with mental health emergencies and divert them from jails.
Hutchinson proposes increased general revenue funding of the state's colleges and universities by $4.1 million to $749.7 million in fiscal 2020.
"The productivity funding formula that you adopted has once again been funded, but there are increases in our non-formula institutions that have been flat funded for a number of years and there has been concern expressed that we are simply using one-time funds to bolster some of our non-formula institutions like the Division of Agriculture and UAMS," Hutchinson told lawmakers.
For example, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences would get a $1.5 million increase to $88 million, and the UA Agriculture Division would get a $1.1 million increase to $63.9 million, he said.
Hutchinson's proposed budget includes $16 million for performance-based pay for state employees and increased funding for 24 new Arkansas State Police troopers over the next two years. It also has an annual new trooper school to maintain trooper strength, he said.
The Department of Community Correction's general revenue budget would increase from $87.9 million to $93.4 million and includes funding for 30 new probation and parole officers, he said. The governor's proposal would increase the Department of Correction general revenue budget from $353.1 million to $360.9 million.
SAVINGS, ONE-TIME FUNDS
Hutchinson said his proposed fiscal 2021 budget, further down the road, includes $7.5 million in savings from his reorganization plan. He will ask lawmakers to reduce the number of state agencies reporting to him from 42 to 15.
He said his proposed budget for the next biennium sets aside $29.9 million in one-time rainy-day funds and $30 million in one-time funds for the Quick Action Closing Fund for job creation and retention efforts. His proposed budgets also set aside $15.8 million in ongoing rainy-day funds in both fiscal 2020 and 2021.
Hutchinson also proposes placing $1.3 million to the state's Long-Term Reserve Fund that will increase the restricted-use savings account to $127 million, Hutchinson said.
Voter approval of Issue 4 to authorize the state to issue four casino licenses has led to a projection of a $38 million reduction in tax revenue in fiscal 2020. That "results not in a reduction in services, but simply a reduction [of what] we are able to put into savings or other reserves," he said.
But Ingram proposed betting state Department of Finance and Department Director Larry Walther that the $38 million budget "hole" projected in fiscal 2020 probably will be roughly half of that "because there has been assumptions that have been made or haven't made." He represents the West Memphis area, where Southland Gaming & Racing, which favored the amendment, can expand into a full-fledged casino.
$1.88M to add 30 parole, probation officers in '20 budget proposal
A Section on 11/15/2018
Print Headline: State budget proposal $125M more than '19; Hutchinson factors in revenue reductions
JakeTidmore
Beware the tax cuts for the rich:
Numbers don't lie. Check out the latest analysis by Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families on winners and losers under Gov. Asa Hutchinson's plan to cut income taxes by more than $200 million over four years, primarily by a whopping reduction of 15 percent in the top marginal tax rate, from 6.9 to 5.9 percent.
the size of the average tax cut would vary tremendously. Including those who wouldn't receive any tax cut, the average tax cut for the bottom 20 percent of taxpayers would be just $5. The middle 20 percent of taxpayers — those with income between $36,000 and $55,000 — would receive an average tax cut of $52. The top 1 percent would receive an average tax cut of $8,128.
And that ain't all:
There also would be big differences in how the tax-cut pie gets divided up. As a group, Arkansas's poorest taxpayers would see few of the benefits. The lowest 20 percent of taxpayers would receive just 1 percent of the total tax-cut pie, and middle-income taxpayers would see 7 percent of the benefits. Most of the benefits under the Governor's proposal would go to those at the top. The top 5 percent of Arkansas taxpayers (those with incomes over $199,000) would receive 65 percent of the benefits from the total tax cut. The top 1 percent alone would receive nearly half (46 percent) of the total tax cut pie.
Not to worry. The rich will trickle benefits upon the poor. Or so the theory goes.
But ..... there's a "double whammy" in the tax cut.
The tax cut will eventually result in the loss of nearly $200 million in tax revenue that could be used to pay for the many (and growing) unmet needs in our state budget. This means less money in the state budget for critical programs that could help our children and families thrive and succeed. It also means less money for the investments that would grow our state's economy and help ensure that all children and families, not just those at the top, sow the benefits of Arkansas's economic growth.
Why do Arkansans vote for politicians who screw the average voter and give all the rewards and goodies to their rich friends?? It's like some fool volunteering to be a human target on a machine gun range and expecting all the bullets to miss him.
Idgit galoots are the downfall of this state. Have cut off their noses to spite their faces and imagine that they're gonna win a beauty contest by doing so.


text:
Crossrail 'may go further over deadline and budget'
Dominic Brady
Crossrail's £2.8bn lifeline from the public purse may not be enough to complete the project, MPs have warned.
A scathing report from the Public Accounts Committee accused the Department of Transport and Crossrail Limited's "unacceptably laissez-faire" attitude to the growing cost of the project to taxpayers.
Crossrail, which will create a new east-west railway through London and beyond, has been beset by delays and overall cost has grown from an initial £14.8bn in 2010 to £17.6bn – an increase of 19%.
Services were due to start in December 2018 but the new projected start date is in 2020, though the PAC report said "we are not convinced that new services will start to run in 2020".
Despite these failures the committee said that DfT and Crossrail Ltd "are unable to fully explain how the programme has been allowed to unravel".
The MPs slammed DfT and Crossrail Ltd for being "unwilling to accept their responsibilities" for failures and for not identifying persons responsible and instead citing "system failures".
"We are entirely unconvinced by this rationale as the department and Crossrail Ltd were responsible for creating and managing the system that enabled these failures to occur," it said.
The report also criticised Transport for London - joint sponsor of the project – for failing to ensure that the governance arrangements were robust enough.
PAC chair Meg Hillier said: "Wishful thinking is no basis for spending public money and there remain serious risks to delivering this programme, with a revised schedule and costings for completing the work still to be agreed. Some £2.8bn of extra funding has been provided for Crossrail but even that may not be enough.
"Accountability in the use of public money is of fundamental importance. The department should write to us urgently to explain what it, TfL and Crossrail Ltd are responsible and accountable for on this programme, and set out clearly what consequences there have been for well-rewarded officials whose costly failures are paid for by taxpayers."
A DfT spokesperson said: "The department consistently challenged the leadership of Crossrail Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of TfL, on the delivery of this project.
"It is deeply disappointing that the PAC – which previously described the oversight of Crossrail as a 'textbook example' of governance – has not recognised any of the steps that have been taken to ensure delivery of this vital project while protecting taxpayers."
A TfL spokesperson said: "We have taken a number of actions to strengthen governance and oversight, including changes to both the Crossrail Ltd board and Crossrail executive team."
Mark Wild, Crossrail chief executive, said: "We take the views of the Public Accounts Committee very seriously and will be reviewing their recommendations carefully."
In December 2018 the DfT agreed a £1.3bn loan to meet the rising cost of the project.
PF reporter
Public transport latest
Regions left behind by London-centric transport investment, MPs warn
Hammond pledges £400m for Northern Powerhouse transport links
PF Award winner: Cheshire East Council and Transport Service Solutions
Grayling approves London Overground extension for Barking
NAO slams Crossrail chiefs for lack of planning
UK ports face major disruption after Brexit
PAC gives full marks to Crossrail


text:
const P = require('parsimmon'),
      optWhitespace = P.optWhitespace,
      lazy = P.lazy,
      regex = P.regex,
      string = P.string,
      alt = P.alt,
      eof = P.eof,
      seq = P.seq,
      sepBy = P.sepBy

const util = require('./util')

module.exports = function parse(raw) {
    return possiblyEmptyForm.parse(raw)
}

const ignore = regex(/(\s*(;[^\n]*(\n\s*|$))?)*/)
function lexeme(p) { return p.skip(ignore) }

const lparen = lexeme(string('(')),
      rparen = lexeme(string(')')),
      symbol = regex(/[a-z_][a-z0-9-_]*/i),
      quoted = regex(/"((?:\\.|.)*?)"/, 1),
      numeral = regex(/-?(0|[1-9]\d*)([.]\d+)?(e[+-]?\d+)?/i).
          desc('a numeral')

const form = lazy('a lisp form', function () {
    return alt(        // order of specificity of first char
        sexp,          // begins with (
        stringLiteral, // begins with "
        numberLiteral, // begins with [-.\d]
        symbolForm)    // begins with [a-zA-Z-_]
})

const possiblyEmptyForm = ignore.then(alt(eof.result(undefined), form)).skip(ignore)

const forms = lexeme(form).many()
      sexp = lparen.then(forms).skip(rparen).
          desc('an s-expression'),
      stringLiteral = quoted.map(util.interpretJsonEscapes),
      numberLiteral = numeral.map(parseFloat),
      symbolForm = symbol.map(function (x) { return { sym: x }})

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
SIGAL UNIQA Group AUSTRIA is a group of seven insurance companies and one private pension fund that operate in Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia.

The following companies are part of the SIGAL Group: SIGAL UNIQA Group AUSTRIA (Non-Life, Albania), SIGAL Life UNIQA Group AUSTRIA (Life, Albania), SIGAL UNIQA Group AUSTRIA Kosovo (Non-Life, Kosovo), SIGAL Life UNIQA Group AUSTRIA Kosovo (Life, Kosovo), UNIQA Skopje (Non-Life, North Macedonia), UNIQA Life Skopje (Life, North Macedonia), SIGAL UNIQA Group AUSTRIA Reinsurance and the Management Company of Private Pension Fund SIGAL Life UNIQA Group AUSTRIA.

SIGAL UNIQA was founded in 1999 and leads the Albanian insurance market for both non-life and life insurances and well as for private pensions as it holds overall more than 30% of the market.

SIGAL UNIQA was the first insurance company in Albania that attracted foreign investments. In October 2003, the Albanian-American Fund of Enterprise became the first shareholder of SIGAL by acquiring 13.3% of shares. Thanks to this agreement, A.A.E.F provided financial and management support not only to SIGAL, but also to the entire insurance market in Albania and in the region where it operates.

Since March 2007, SIGAL has been part of the UNIQA Group AUSTRIA. The company operates in 21 European countries and is one of the biggest financial groups in Europe. The company was awarded with an "A" by "Standard & Poor's", with 24.6 Billion Euro under its management and more than 7.5 Million clients. UNIQA Group AUSTRIA is the biggest stakeholder of SIGAL UNIQA Group AUSTRIA as it holds 68.64% of shares. Based on this, more than 80% of SIGAL UNIQA's capital derives from foreign investments.

Internationally, the SIGAL UNIQA Group AUSTRIA has been continually awarded by Finance Central Europe as "The Best Insurance Company in Albania". SEE News listed SIGAL UNIQA among the top insurance companies in the region and Business Initiative Directions awarded SIGAL UNIQA with the "International Star for Quality", a vanity award.

References

Financial services companies established in 1999
Insurance companies of Albania
Albanian brands
1999 establishments in Albania

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
The 1907 St. Louis Browns season was a season in American baseball. It involved the Browns finishing 6th in the American League with a record of 69 wins and 83 losses.

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Pitching

Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

References
1907 St. Louis Browns team page at Baseball Reference
1907 St. Louis Browns season at baseball-almanac.com

St. Louis Browns seasons
Saint Louis Browns season
St Louis


"May I present my friend Don Alonso Quixano Bergoglio." It was the most anyone had ever heard Yin say in such a long and drawn out fashion all by herself. She indicated the tall, handsome Latino beside her with a sweep of her hands, and he bowed, his Gaucho's straw hat held to his heart.
"And Inacayalita." Well, Yin had almost said something by herself. Yang did add to it in a complementary fashion as he beamed at the plump little Mocoví woman beside him.
"We met at the Zen Center." All four of them said it in unison.
"Ah." Arnold did a little channeling of Hari.
"Or tea or coffee or food?" Arnold was up and bringing more chairs to the big table.
"I"d love some wine." Alonso was tall. While one might have expected Yin to go for a guy who resembled Yang, someone who complemented her the way he did, that just goes to show that one never knows, don't it?
Yang was soft, Yin was buff. Alonso was ripped, athletic, outdoorsy, a herdsman just as the twins Mongol father had been. Yang was wan, Yin dark ebony, Alonso the light tan of Castilian Conquistador. Yang was a rather effeminate man, even with the black spikes, Yin was a strong and tough woman, even with the earrings; Alonso was a stud muffin. His beard was trimmed to a perfect Van Dyke, his mustache curled with scented wax. They made a beautiful pair, something sculpted.
"Tea for me please, if you have it." Inacayalita took Yang further into his pole of twinhood as well. She was small and round and sweet as pie, a woman with a perpetual smile. She was nearly as dark as his sister. Both of the Argentines had brown eyes.
"The twins tell us you're related to Pope Francis?" Tante threw the statement out there as a question. Alonso might be the first real Christian she ever spent much time with. Her parents hadn't really had any religion, and Tamminya had just handed her an old copy of a King James Bible and told her to read it, especially the New Testament, and Revelations for sure. She'd picked around through it here and there at best. She crapped out early with the begetting and found herself guffawing with the ravings that included the end times. The middle stuff she'd kind of picked through.
"Yes." The twins said it in unison. The Bergoglio twins. They smiled at each other. Inacayalita nodded to her brother, who seated himself beside Yin and took a sip of wine.
"Our grandfather's family has been in Argentina for several hundred years, they were among the original settlers from the old world in that region. He was a distant cousin to the Pope. Our mother was his only child and heir apparent to a Grade Ranquilo." He smiled as Ina took over.
"But alas, Mamá fell in love with our Mocoví father, an indigenous man from the land between the Rios Berijo and Salado, the best gaucho in the whole country. He was a wild one, wouldn't work the big ranches, just ran and hunted and fished with the old ones on the land." You could tell she worshipped her father.
"When she became pregnant, our grandfather sent Mamá off to a convent and ordered the sisters to find foster parents for us. The shame of a daughter such as she was too much for his proud Castilian dignity." If he hadn't had been so cultured himself, Alonso would have spit.
"No, please, go on! You're a great story teller!" Ja was starting to cheer up quite a bit.
"And what makes you think there's something that brings us all together in the here now?" Zeus was feeling super rational all of a sudden, defensive about it; perhaps it was the masculine pheromones wafting off of Alonso.
"We are also Dragons of Fomalhaut b, like our bonded ones, Yin and Yang." Ina beamed.
"We're couples." The four part harmony was nice. Tante had her minstrels.
"Synchronicity?" Juno figured she'd throw it out there.
"Ah, are we to add Jung to the mix in our discussion of what brings us all to the here and now? Rationality? Spirituality? Alchemical Psychology?" Zeus still had the big flirt going on with Juno. They'd been playing footsie nonstop since his last monolog.
"So how do to go from the infinite cosmic to living life in the ephemeral every day?" Zeus was indeed being a bit aggressive. Hormones.
"Good than evil." Tante had to throw that one in there.
"What about good and evil?" Tante's eternal question.
"There is no evil. There is vice. Vice comes from fear, anxiety, confusion." It was all old stuff to Juno, the psychologist.
"Those things we felt in the bad haired one." Yanaha commented.
"So how do we overcome vice?" Tante really wanted to know.
"It's interesting how some of the eastern spiritual thought interfaces with that of the Mocoví elders as well." Ina sipped her tea and smiled. It was one of Yanaha's special blends, good for lucid dreams. Ina was an herbalist who knew most plants by smell, if not by sight.
"Rules and Fascists and the Church." Ja was appalled.
"For me, it was a way to integrate the excellence and purity of moral virtue I'd learned in the rigid rules of the church with the power and light of the cosmic whole, the natural world that the shamans had shown me as a child. It allowed me to examine the projections and reflections of myself and others. I came to recognize how language is not up to dealing with reality sometimes, my childhood language was so different, and that the naming and categorizing and rewards and punishments of the culture I encounter as a teen and adult are wanting, something artificial. It helped me to see that my natural instincts towards justice and kindness and virtue are effortless; they don't require the rituals of the church, I didn't need to confess meaningless sins or eat of the body of Christ." Alonso was looking upward at the nothing a few feet in front of his face.
"Do you dream much?" Yanaha asked as she poured another cup of her brew and handed it to Tante.
"Yes, all the time, vividly, in great detail." She smiled.
"Do you fly in your dreams?" This time it was Ina who asked.
"Sometimes. It's one of the ways I can tell if I'm dreaming or not. I can't fly when I'm awake." She was really grinning at that point.
"Are you awake now, or dreaming?" Ina.
"I'm awake." She was sure of it. She could taste the tea, was enjoying meeting new friends.
"Who is Zoldak?" Ina was staring at her now, intently.
"Wow, you're good." Yanaha cut the tension by distracting Ina.
"Oh, I like peyote. We've also travelled with the Sage One, and the mushrooms here in Forest are very nice." It seemed Yanaha and Ina were colleagues of a sort in the love of botanicals and other medicinals.
Tante seemed to be recovering from a little doze. For a minute she'd thought she was a butterfly.
"No, the secret to finding the way is to look for the empty space. The path through the forest is where the trees aren't. The way to go is that which your instinct tells you effortlessly, the way that is not forced." Alonso smiled.
"Anarchy!" Ja smiled, too and did a fist pump.
"I believe there is such a thing as duty, the duty to live in harmony with others in society, which is one's innate instinct, to have concern for the whole. But you're right, duty cannot become a prison." He tweaked the twirl on his mustache. It was gorgeous. He wrapped his arm around Yin.
"And now we've found love." She kissed his neck just below beardline.
"Now we are complete." Yang pulled Ina down on his knee and bounced her.
"Yes, you guys did say that you were going to tell us about escape from the chains of birth and death." Tante was taunting the twins, t'was in good fun. "Falling in love has definitely worked wonders for both of you." She grinned at them. Love was blooming all around, springtime on the coast.
"Well, our chains of birth were definitely to each other." Yin had gotten downright verbose.
"We were so focused on the self of Yang and non-self of Yin." Yang, too.
"That we failed to see the all." All together now.
"Our constant engagement with each other led to conceptions, deceptive abstracts superimposed on self, based on the other." Yin.
"We were so focused on the center between us we failed to see left or right." Yang.
"Until we fell in love and saw the others." They turned from each other toward their beloveds as they said it, a rolling of the Taijitu into half.
A drop of water holding the reflection of the Pacific Coast sunset rolled down Alonso's wine glass and was gone.
"So it ties back in with being part of a cosmic whole. Each one of us a piece of a grand puzzle, interdependent, ever changing, evolving together, flowing through time." Haile loved picking out patterns.
"And there's no time but the present." Ja.
"But the present is made from the past and determines the future. It's what makes right action and wisdom so important, cosmic plan or no cosmic plan." Zeus was taking the action of offering his hand to his lovely partner, ready to lead her off to a nice spot on the beach.
"Well, let's save cosmic plans for tomorrow. I'm tired." Tante managed to say it without any whine at all. The old crone was slipping.
"And the chains of death. The twins spoke of the chains of their birth. I will speak of the chains of death. Another day." Haile.


text:
Protestants' Most-Famous Document
MARTIN LUTHER'S 95 Theses are often considered a charter, a bold declaration of independence for the Protestant church.
But when he wrote nearly 100 points of debate in Latin, Luther was simply inviting fellow academics to a "Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences," the theses' official title. (The debate never was held, because the theses were translated into German and distributed widely, creating an uproar.)
What were indulgences? In the sacrament of penance, Christians confessed sins and found absolution for them. The process of penance involved satisfaction—paying the temporal penalty for those sins. Under certain circumstances, someone who was truly contrite and had confessed his sins could receive partial (or, rarely, complete) remission of temporal punishment by purchasing a letter of indulgence.
In the 95 Theses, Luther did not attack the idea of indulgences, for in Thesis 73 he wrote, "... the pope justly thunders against those who by any means whatsoever contrive harm to the sale of indulgences."
But Luther strongly objected to the abuse of indulgences—most recently under the salesmanship of Johann Tetzel. And in the process, Luther, though probably not fully aware of it, knocked down the pillars supporting many practices in medieval Christianity.
Key Statements
Here are thirteen samples of Luther's theses:
1. When our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, says "Repent ye," etc., he means that the entire life of the faithful should be a repentance.
2. This statement cannot be understood of the sacrament of penance, i.e., of confession and satisfaction, which is administered by the priesthood.
27. They preach human folly who pretend that as soon as money in the coffer rings a soul from purgatory springs.
32. Those who suppose that on account of their letters of indulgence they are sure of salvation will be eternally damned along with their teachers.
36. Every Christian who truly repents has plenary [full] forgiveness both of punishment and guilt bestowed on him, even without letters of indulgence.
37. Every true Christian, whether living or dead, has a share in all the benefits of Christ and the Church, for God has granted him these, even without letters of indulgence.
45. Christians should be taught that whoever sees a person in need and, instead of helping him, uses his money for an indulgence, obtains not an indulgence of the pope but the displeasure of God.
51. Christians should be taught that the pope ought and would give his own substance to the poor, from whom certain preachers of indulgences extract money, even if he had to sell St. Peter's Cathedral to do it.
81. This shameless preaching of pardons makes it hard even for learned men to defend the pope's honor against calumny or to answer the indubitably shrewd questions of the laity.
82. For example: "Why does not the pope empty purgatory for the sake of holy love ... for after all, he does release countless souls for the sake of sordid money contributed for the building of a cathedral? ..."
90. To suppress these very telling arguments of the laity by force instead of answering them with adequate reasons would be to expose the church and the pope to the ridicule of their enemies and to render Christians unhappy.
94. We should admonish Christians to follow Christ, their Head, through punishment, death, and hell.
95. And so let them set their trust on entering heaven through many tribulations rather than some false security and peace.
Within two months, Johann Tetzel fired back with his own theses, including: "Christians should be taught that the Pope, by authority of his jurisdiction, is superior to the entire Catholic Church and its councils, and that they should humbly obey his statutes."
[Christian History originally published this article in Christian History Issue #34 in 1992]
The Decisive Documents of 1520
After Luther published these three works, there was no turning back.
Colorful Sayings of Colorful Luther
A sample of the reformer's wit and wisdom.
Mary Ann Jeffreys
Martin Luther's Early Years: Christian History Timeline
Chronology of events related to Luther's life and the Reformation.
Ken Schurb
Preaching From the Print Shop
If Luther hadn't used the new printing technology, would there have been a Reformation?
Perry Brown


text:
« Wednesday Wonders [Free Selections]
Plans »
Making the Derby Is a Game of Numbers Across the Board
by Greg Melikov
posted on April 15, 2010 in General Discussion, Kentucky Derby | 1 Comment >>
Horses are waiting in the wings for D-Day — April 28. That's when the post-position draw for the 136th Derby is scheduled.
However, No. 21 on the graded stakes earnings list will be waiting on the sidelines. Uh Oh Bango, fourth in the Arkansas Derby, came out of the race with a fractured
left-front cannon bone, will have surgery this week and be out of action from four to six months.
Jackson Bend with $230,000 advances to next in line. All interested parties in his camp were awaiting word from trainer Ken McPeek about his Noble Promise, No. 2 on the list. A maximum of 20 horses can run in the Kentucky Derby, but graded stakes determines who makes the field.
The son of Cuvee, fifth at Oaklawn Park on April 10, endured a horrible trip. "He came out of it with several cuts and scrapes (on both front legs)," McPeek said shortly after the race, plus a "slight lung infection."
He was treated with antibiotics and how long it takes to heal will determine his status, McPeek said. Apparently, the horse is a quick healer.
On Monday, the Derby chances of Noble's Promise were 50-50. On Tuesday, Kelly Colliver, one of the managing partners of Chasing Dreams Racing, told BloodHorse.com, "Some of the cuts were significant, but not as deep as we originally thought."
In fact, she and other members of the racing syndicate were "overspoiling him with mints" and giving him lots of attention at McPeek's farm. "He's feeling well and he spent some time in the round pen today with the sunshine on his back," Colliver said. "He's healed up nicely."
Nicely, indeed, and the colt is being shipped to Churchill Downs.
That's bad good news for Backtalk, No. 22 on the earnings list with $225,916, who finished third in the Illinois Derby at Hawthorne on April 3.
Last year, the No 20, Nowhere to Hide, got in with only $55,500. He ran 17th out of 19 runners to Mine That Bird.
In 2008, Denis of Cork was the last horse to make the race with $165,000 despite a few late defections. He ran third to Big Brown in a 20-horse field. Imawildandcrazyguy drew in with $104,000 in '08 when 20 also ran, finishing fourth to Street Sense.
Back in '03, Ten Cents a Shine slipped in with a meager $46,240 and only 16 were entered. He ran eighth behind Funny Cide.
The largest field came more than a decade before starters were limited to 20 in '86 when Ferdinand roared home in front. In '74, favored Cannonade was the winner in a 23-horse field.
There have been 20 starters nine times, including four consecutive years ending in '08. There were 19 in the race six years, including five times since '95 when Thunder Gulch scored.
Winners the past 22 years are 11 each, breaking from post 9 and in as well as post 10 and outward.
Only two post positions have failed to produce the Derby champ – 18 and 19.


Whether you are hosting a corporate event or a large family party, everyone will enjoy our funfair rides and inflatable hire. We have a wide range of inflatables and funfair rides available, from a rodeo bull simulator to Pulsar, the energetic laser game.
At Krystina Variety Agency we always strive to match your event's theme, if you have one. For example, if required, our Rodeo simulator operators can come fully attired in Stetson hat, gun holsters, guns and cowboy boots, adding atmosphere to your country and western night.
Our agency can tailor entertainment to your event requirements and age ranges. For example our human table football provides a nice medium for both young and old, with our vertical wind tunnel an adult only activity. All of our rides and inflatables come with public liability insurance and risk assessment.


text:
An open letter to Rep. Ron Estes
Sir, just so you can quickly trash this letter if you choose I did not vote for you nor will I vote for you in the future, reason being, to me at least, you are an embarrassment to your country, your office and the people of Kansas. As a member of Congress you have sworn to uphold the Constitution, the democratic process, and the rule of law and yet you have refused to recognize President-elect Biden's electoral win and further you joined a failed Texas lawsuit to overturn the certified election results in states that sealed his victory. In fact, the Texas loss followed at least 50 failed court cases that offered no evidentiary proof that widespread election fraud had even occurred.
Thankfully, both Republican and Democrat election officials oversaw a secure and honest election, endured numerous recounts, and bravely stood by the results in the face of nuisance lawsuits and personal threats to themselves and their families. Sir, there was no fraud, has not this clear message penetrated the fog of whatever reality in which you reside?
Mr. Estes, I know you recognize morality in some form as you have called for an investigation into the painfully corrupt actions of Wichita city councilman James Clendenen, one egregious example of which was an actual attempt to rig the recent mayoral contest. So somehow you do recognize political malfeasance, but that notwithstanding how can you turn right around and endanger the very country you have sworn to protect. Has your allegiance to the current and very corrupt president who has virtually ripped up the Constitution over the last four years numbed you to the lethal potential of continuing to denigrate the democratic electoral process that is the bedrock of our union? Most Americans and I think you as well do not want us to end up as a third world autocracy where sham elections keep corrupt, self-serving politicians in power. I suggest you man up, admit to the fact that Biden won and work hard over the next four years to get your party in shape for the next presidential race. I still won't vote for you as we will most certainly disagree on many issues including the value of science, racial justice, climate change, gun control and the rest of the progressive agenda for which you have shown such disdain. What I won't do, like it or not, is question the results of the election for I know that our local election officials as well as those across this great land do it by the book. Too bad you don't see it that way.
— Timothy C. Adams, North Newton
How many family and supporters to go?
President Trump 's latest pardons and clemencies include his son-in-law's father, a number of allies involved with the Mueller investigation into Russian interference and four Blackwater guards convicted of the massacre of 17 Iraqi civilians. The last group should never see the light of day again.
Who will be the next on this pardon train, there are not that many family members left and surely none of them have committed any offenses! From what is shown in the media his band of allies is quickly diminishing, so that group is almost completely pardoned. Although presidential pardons can be given to almost anyone, the release of any more murderers from prisons would not be well received.
About the only person left to pardon is himself but to do so would imply that he has done something wrong and surely that is not the case.
Pardon me, but no more pardons please.
— Dennis Fitzgerald, Melbourne, Australia


CNC Plasma cutter works with plasma torch, it is an accelerated jet of hot plasma, mainly to cut steel, Stainless steel, aluminum, brass and copper in the thinkness of 0.5-22mm at a good speed of 0-8000mm/min.
Flame cutting, also known as oxy-fuel cutting, it works also with a torch to cut material by preheating, oxidizing the material and removing the oxide.
You can order machines with either or both functions above to do cutting work. Our sales manager will provide professional advices.